Career
Majoli was born in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia and turned professional in 1991 at the age of 14. At age 19, Majoli won the 1997 French Open singles title, defeating Martina Hingis in straight sets 6-4, 6-2. Most had expected Hingis, 16 years old, to win the title. Majoli, however, played aggressively from the baseline and ended Hingis's 37-match winning streak and handed Hingis her first sound defeat in a final of a grand slam. Her adept ground-strokes kept Hingis moving, therefore Hingis was not allowed to control the rallies.
Majoli played her best tennis as a teenager, reaching her career high ranking of World No. 4 in 1996. After a quarterfinal appearance at the 1998 French Open, she failed to reach the fourth round of any subsequent Grand Slam singles tournament. Her game steadily declined, with her ranking plummeting to World No. 131 in 2003. In the final years of her tennis career, Majoli suffered from a series of injuries – most notably a shoulder injury – and struggled to play consistently. Her jet-setting lifestyle, well documented by the press, may have contributed.
In 2002, Majoli, ranked World No. 58, defeated Patty Schnyder, ranked World No. 30, in the final of the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina. The victory increased Majoli's ranking to World No. 33. She reached another final shortly thereafter, prompting some to believe that she was climbing back to the top of the game. This, however, was wishful thinking, as Majoli's ranking then plummeted even further. On June 12, 2004, Majoli announced her retirement from the game.
In 2006, she announced that she was engaged and pregnant with her first child. She married a local businessman, Stipe Marić, on September 9, 2006, with Jennifer Capriati and Mary Pierce attending the wedding. She gave birth to her daughter Mia on October 31, 2006.
In 2007, Majoli participated in the second season of the Croatian version of Dancing with the Stars. Her partner was Marko Herceg. She was eliminated in the fourth episode.
In 2012, she´s the non-playing captain of the Croatian Fed Cup team .
Read more about this topic: Iva Majoli
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