Philippe Washer
 Philippe Washer and Ivo Rinkel in 1950 | |
| Country (sports) |
.svg.png){kind=small} Belgium |
|---|---|
| Born |
6 August 1924 Brussels, Belgium |
| Died |
27 November 2015 (aged 91) Knokke, West Flanders, Belgium |
| Turned pro | 1940 (amateur tour) |
| Retired | 1961 |
| Singles | |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| French Open | QF (1957) |
| Wimbledon | 4R (1948, 1949, 1954) |
| US Open | 4R (1952) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | SF (1953) |
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
| French Open | SF (1954) |
| Wimbledon | 4R (1947, 1948, 1952) |
Philippe Washer (French pronunciation: [filip waʃe]; 6 August 1924 – 27 November 2015) was a Belgian tennis player. He competed in the Davis Cup a number of times, from 1946 to 1961.[1]
Early life and family
Philippe Washer was born on 6 August 1924 in Brussels. He is the son of Jean Washer, another Belgian tennis player and textile industry mogul.[2] Her mother, Simone van der Straeten, was the daughter of Ernest Solvay, founder of Solvay International Chemical Group.[2] Philippe had three brothers: Paul Washer, president of the Chemical Industry Federation of Belgium and director of the Solvay company; Jacques Washer, antiquarian who died in the Swissair Flight 316 crash; and Edouard.[2] They were also the cousins of famous sportscar racer Olivier Gendebien.[3] Philippe started playing tennis at the age of six.[4] He was coached by his father.[4] He won his first tournament on 9 May 1940 in La Rasante just one day before the Battle of Belgium during which he volunteered to join the Belgian Army.[4] In 1942 he won the French junior championships. [5]
Tennis career
Washer won the Belgian National Championships nine times between 1945–1954, the only exception being 1950 when he was forced to retire from the competition due to illness.[4] In 1952, he reached the semifinal of the Royal Belgian Tennis Federation Fiftieth Anniversary tournament.[5] In 1957, he reached the Inter-Zonal Zone Finals of the Davis Cup with the Belgium Davis Cup team.[4] The same year he won the Lebanon international tennis championships by defeating Warren Woodcock.[6] In 1967 he came back from retirement to win the Belgian National Covered Courts Championship doubles, partnering with Jacky Brichant.[4] Also after retirement, he won the Wimbledon Veterans' Doubles with Jaroslav Drobný four times from 1968 to 1971.[7]
Personal life
Washer retired from tennis in 1961, moved to Switzerland and subsequently started playing golf.[8] In 1964 he represented Belgium in the Eisenhower Trophy.[9] In 1955 he lent his own Ferrari 250 Europa GT Pinin Farina Coupe car to Olivier Gendebien who drove it in the Liège-Rome-Liège rally and finished third.[3] After retiring he served as the president of the Royal Léopold Club between 1983 and 1994, which his family saved from bankruptcy in 1948.[5][10] He remained its major shareholder afterwards.[10] Washer died on 27 November 2015 at the age of 91.[11]
Footnotes
- ↑ "Philippe Washer". daviscup.com.
- 1 2 3 Meuwissen 1992.
- 1 2 Chauvin 2010, p. 54.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Tasso 2002.
- 1 2 3 Royal Léopold Club website.
- ↑ Lebanon international tennis website.
- ↑ The Telegraph, 2001.
- ↑ Leonardi 1997.
- ↑ 1964 WAGTC.
- 1 2 MIG. T. 2007.
- ↑ "Belgisch Davis Cup-icoon Philippe Washer overleden". HLN (in Dutch).
Works cited
- Tasso, Miguel (2002). "Philippe Washer préfère les filles" [Philippe Washer prefers girls]. La Libre Belgique (in French) (Brussels, Belgium). Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- MIG. T. (2007). "Philippe Washer:"Je regarde toujours devant moi"" [Philippe Washer: "I always look forward"]. La Dernière Heure (in French) (Brussels, Belgium: Groupe IPM). ISSN 1780-0412. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- "obituaries – Jaroslav Drobny". The Daily Telegraph (London, United Kingdom). 2001. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- Meuwissen, Eric (1992). "Waterloo: Washer lotit" [Waterloo: Washer subdivides]. Le Soir (in French) (Brussels, Belgium). ISSN 1186-4583. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- Chauvin, Xavier (February 2010). "Dossier: Ferrari Belrinetta" (PDF). Rétroviseur (in French) (Fontainebleu, France: Éditions LVA) (253): 54. ISSN 0992-5007.
- "History" (in French). Brussels, Belgium: Royal Léopold Club.
- Nohad Victor Schoucair. "1957 / April 7". Lebanon: Lebanon International Tenis.
- Leonardi, Paolo (1997). "Le tennis etait presque aussi populaire que le football" [Tennis was almost as popular as football]. Le Soir (in French) (Brussels, Belgium). ISSN 1186-4583. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- 1964 World Amateur Golf Team Championships Record Book (PDF) (in French). 1964. p. 12. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
External links
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