Tennis legend Maria Bueno gives her tips for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games tournament
Brazilian who won 19 grand slam titles in the 1950s and 1960s reveals who she thinks will be the tennis medallists next year
Maria Bueno said Brazilians should make the most of the Olympic Games in their country (Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)
One of the greatest female tennis players of all time, Brazil’s Maria Esther Bueno, visited the Rio 2016 Organising Committee headquarters on Thursday (7 May) and shared her thoughts on next year’s Olympic tennis tournament.
A 19-time grand slam champion (seven singles titles, 12 doubles titles), Bueno was known for her graceful style of play that sometimes gave the impression she was gliding across the court. It took her to the top of the world rankings in 1959, 1960, 1964 and 1966.
Bueno never played in the Olympic Games, as tennis was absent from the programme between 1924 and 1988, but could not hide her enthusiasm about seeing the sport played in her home country, at the new Olympic Tennis Centre in Barra Olympic Park, in 2016.
Check out the video of her interview:
