Ladislav Hecht
 | |
| Born |
August 31, 1909 Zsolna, Austria-Hungary |
|---|---|
| Died |
May 27, 2004 (aged 94) Kew Gardens, Queens, New York City |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Singles | |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| French Open | 4R (1934, 1935, 1938) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1938) |
| US Open | 3R (1939, 1941, 1942, 1951) |
| Doubles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 6 (1934)[1][2] |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| French Open | SF (1934)[3] |
| Wimbledon | SF (1937) |
| US Open | QF (1939)[4] |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1938) |
| Team competitions | |
| Davis Cup | FEu (1931, 1934, 1937) |
Ladislav Hecht (Czech pronunciation: [ˈladɪslaf ˈɦɛxt]; Hungarian: Hecht László [ˈhɛkt ˈlaːsloː];[5] August 31, 1909 – May 27, 2004;) was a Jewish professional tennis player, well known for representing Czechoslovakia in the Davis Cup during the 1930s where he compiled an 18 victories 19 losses record. Despite being of Jewish origin he was also invited to the Germany Davis Cup team but chose not to accept it. [2]
Biography
He was born in Zsolna, Upper Hungary (now Žilina, Slovakia) in 1909, and developed a successful tennis career, some considering him to be the best tennis player in Europe immediately before the Second World War.[2] He then fled to the United States three days before Nazi Germany invaded Czechoslovakia in 1939, working in a munitions factory during World War II. [6] Before that he moved to Budapest, capital of Hungary in 1936 then sought livelihood in Australia three month prior the German occupation.[7][8]
In 1934 he won the Butler Trophy of Monte Carlo alongside Roderich Menzel defeating Jacques Brugnon and Jean Lesueur in the final.[9] In singles he was victorious at the Hungarian International Tennis Championships having upset Henner Henkel in the semifinal and Ignacy Tłoczyński in the final. [10][11] He reached the doubles finals as well partnering Josef Caska. [12]
In late 1935 and early 1936 Hecht and Roderich Menzel toured the Far East and as a result they traveled to Japan to participate in the Japanese National Championships, where Menzel fell in the final and despite their united effort they lost in the doubles final as well both times to title defender Jiro Yamagishi.[13]From there they sailed to India where they were the finalists at the East of India Championships.[14] Arriving home he was defeated in the Czechoslovakian International Championship match by eventual world number one Fred Perry. [15] He was a second straight time finalist in Budapest.[16]
After the war he continued his tennis career, becoming a #1 ranked player in the eastern United States. In 1941 he was a runner-up for the Brooklyn tennis tournament his volleying yet came short behind Pancho Segura passing shots and thus lost the final.[17] In 1947 he finally clinched the Brooklyn tennis tournament by beating Peruvian Enrique Buse in straight sets.[18] He added the Eatern Clay Court Championships to his accolades the same year by eliminating Dick Savitt in the final.[19]
He continued on starting toy and paintbrush businesses, and later in life was honored by the city of Bratislava, having a new multisport stadium named after him in 1966.[6]
He had two children Timothy and Andrew both of whom settled in Aspen.[2]
Footnotes
- ↑ Skolnik 2007, p. 147.
- 1 2 3 4 The New York Times 2004, Ladislav Hecht, 94, a Tactician On the Tennis Courts in the 30's.
- ↑ Cairns Post 1934, World tennis.
- ↑ The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 1939, American Tennis Championships.
- ↑ Tennisz és Golf 1931, Balance sheet of the first international tournament of the Czechoslovakian Hungarian Tennis Association.
- 1 2 International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame website.
- ↑ Mariborer Zeitung 1936, Sport.
- ↑ The Canberra Times 1938, Czech tennis star seeks job.
- ↑ Keesing's Record of World Events 1934, Sport.
- ↑ Nowiny Codzienne 1934, More success for Tłoczyński at the tennis competition in Budapest.
- ↑ Dobry Znak 2011, The forgotten legend: Ignatius Tłoczyński.
- ↑ Huszadik Század 1934, Schréderné – Paksyné won the ladies' doubles.
- ↑ Sydney Morning Heralds 1936, Japanese Championships.
- ↑ Straits Times 1936, Lawn Tennis. Czechs do well in India.
- ↑ Argus 1936, Perry wins.
- ↑ Huszadik Század 1935, Gábori took revenge on Szigeti in the semifinals.
- ↑ Seebohm 2009, p. 31.
- ↑ Wechsler 2008, p. 166.
- ↑ Wechsler 2008, p. 208.
Works cited
Online media
- "Elected members". jewishsports.net. New York, United States: International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Keesing's Record of World Events". 1934. p. 1151. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
Books
- Skolnik, Fred, ed. (2007). "Tennis and Squash" (PDF). Encyclopaedia Judaica (PDF). Jerusalem, Israel: Keter Publishing House. ISBN 9780028660974.
- Wechsler, Bob (2008). Day By Day In Jewish Sports History. KTAV Publishing House. ISBN 9781602800137.
- Seebohm, Caroline (2009). Little Pancho: The Life of Tennis Legend Pancho Segura. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 9780803220416.
Periodicals
- "Czech tennis star seeks job" (pdf). The Canberra Times. Canberra, Australia: Federal Capital Press of Australia. XIII (3,506): 1. December 14, 1938. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Sport" (PDF). Mariborer Zeitung (in German). Maribor, Slovenia: Marburger Verlags- und Druckerei Ges. 76 (105): 6. May 8, 1936. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "American Tennis Championships". The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser. Singapore, Straits Settlements: Mohammed Eunos (15,860): 12. August 19, 1939. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "World tennis". The Cairns Post. 52 (10,086). Cairns QLD, Australia. June 4, 1934. p. 7. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Gábori revánsot vett Szigetin a teniszbajnokság elődöntőjében" [Gábori took revenge on Szigeti in the semifinals] (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Huszadik század. September 1935. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Schréderné – Paksyné nyerték a női páros teniszbajnokságot" [Schréderné – Paksyné won the ladies' doubles] (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Huszadik Század. September 1934. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Dalsze sukcesy Tłoczyńskiego na zawodach tenisowych w Budapeszcie" [More success for Tłoczyński at the tennis competition in Budapest] (djvu). Nowiny Codzienne (in Polish). Warsaw, Poland. III (250): 2. September 8, 1934.
- Krzysztof Kraśnicki (2011). Mariusz Gazda, ed. "Zapomniana legenda: Ignacy Tłoczyński" [The forgotten legend: Ignatius Tłoczyński]. Dobry Znak (in Polish). Wołomin, Poland: UBR Ltd. 4 (21).
- "Perry wins". The Argus. Melbourne, Australia: Argus Office (27,981): 25. November 23, 1935. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Japanese Championships". The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney, Australia: John Fairfax and Sons. 105 (30,581): 18. November 25, 1935. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- "Lawn Tennis. Czechs do well in India". The Straits Times. Singapore, Straits Settlements: Straits Times Press: 14. January 8, 1936. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- Béla Kehrling, ed. (November 1, 1931). "A Csehszlovákiai Magyar Tenisz Szövetség első nemzetközi versenyének mérlege" [Balance sheet of the first international tournament of the Czechoslovakian Hungarian Tennis Association] (PDF). Tennisz és Golf (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Egyesült Kő-, Könyvnyomda. Könyv- és Lapkiadó Rt. III (20): 391. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- Litsky, Frank (June 10, 2004). "Ladislav Hecht, 94, a Tactician On the Tennis Courts in the 30's". The New York Times. New York, United States: The New York Times Company. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 6, 2013.
External links
- Ladislav Hecht at the International Tennis Federation
- Ladislav Hecht at the Davis Cup