Friday, October 24, 2008

Long Season is Over

Amelie 2008 season came to an end today in the quarterfinals of Luxembourg lossing to Elena Dementieva 4-6 ,0-6 Amelie has 6 DF 1 Ace and a serve of 58% .Come Back Strong In 2009 Amelie .ALLEZ AMELIE , GO MOMO

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!

Final blog:

Friday, October 24, 2008

Well, I had a difficult time today. Elena was playing well and was just too good. She has been having a great season and is playing really well, so I wish her luck the rest of the week and in Doha. I myself have things I want to work on, and after a short break I'll be looking for my new coach and getting back to work for the upcoming 2009 season.

I want to thank you all for reading this week. I really enjoyed all of the questions you sent in, I'm sorry I couldn't get to all of them! I was so happy to talk about wine, my dogs... I had a good time, and I'll definitely blog again next year!

Thank you for all your support and talk to you all again soon :)

Amélie

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Thursday, October 23, 2008

On to The Next Round

Amelie won her match today Vs Anna -Lena Groenefeld in just 58 mins beating her in striat sets 6-3, 6-1 Amelie had 2 Aces DF and a serve of 61% next up is Elena Dementieva .Amelie leads her 8-5 in head to Head .Good Luck Amelie .ALLEZ AMELIE , GO MOMO

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!



Thursday, October 23, 2008


I did win my match today, but I'm sorry to say my day started pretty badly. I called my two dogs this morning and they wouldn't talk to me! I was a little bit upset. Here I am, desperate to talk to them, and they wouldn't even pick up the phone. It was really difficult for me. On a happy note, I later found out they're running out of credit on their mobiles, so I'm hoping that was the reason they didn't pick up! I'll have to get them some more when I'm back. I've attached a picture of what they were doing when I was calling them.

The rest of my day was definitely good. I was a little up and down in my first match of the week yesterday, but today I was consistent throughout both sets against Groenefeld. She has been in great form the last few months so I'm happy to have won in two sets. I was very focused and played well tactically.

After the match, the tournament gave me a bottle of wine - this blog is working well for me now, because I was saying how much I liked Bordeaux wine and now they got me some! Maybe I should start saying how much I like Ferraris...

Right now I'm going to have a massage and then we'll go to dinner. I don't have anything else planned for tonight. Tomorrow will be a good test for me. Elena has been playing well all year and it'll be a good opportunity for me to see where my game's at. Now I'll respond to some of your questions then continue with my day :)

Talk to you all tomorrow!

Amélie

What's the funniest thing your dogs have ever done? - Moira
When you see how they are, they're actually not really funny! For those of you who don't know, I have two Golden Retrievers - a mother and her son. They're very well behaved, but I can remember one time when the little one caused some trouble... I was making my dinner and left some foie gras - which is sort of an appetizer in France, spread on bread and eaten with some sweet white wine - on the counter. I left for 20 seconds and when I came back, the little one was on the counter and the food was nowhere to be seen. He ate it! But that was the only thing I can think of. He never did it again (probably because I was angry at him, after laughing a little bit of course!)

Which retired player do you miss playing the most? - David

Kim. We always had unbelievable matches. It was always a high level of tennis, probably because our games matched up really well. Kim had such a great spirit too, on and off the court. She was a great player and great person.

What's your plan for winter? - Mate
That's a good question - I actually have a very exciting trip booked next week! I'm leaving for New York. I have a friend who is running the November 2nd marathon there. My friend Alexia is coming with me, and we're going to support him in the race. We're also going to run the last 10km with him. It's going to be interesting seeing New York outside the US Open, which is usually the only time I ever go... I hear it's an amazing time around the marathon, so I'm excited about it. We'll probably stay for a week. We'll leave after we find out the results of their elections. I'm not really into politics, it'll just be interesting to see what happens.

What would be the perfect day for you? - Barbara, Germany
I would definitely start by sleeping in a little late. I'd still go for exercise, maybe running with the dogs or something... I'd spend the afternoon on the beach and hang out with friends in the late afternoon or evening, with a nice dinner and a good bottle of wine. I would enjoy just hanging out with them, maybe going to the theater... It feels like we're running around really busy the rest of the year, so the perfect day for me would have to be relaxing, most importantly.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

It has become quite a late night for me! It actually began as a long waiting day, as I played the night match. So during the day I spent a lot of time on the internet, mostly on eBay looking for wine (of course!)

I'm happy to have won my first match of the week, although something funny happened during the first set... I had parked my car outside the entrance to the building, and in the first set I heard a car alarm going off, but since I was playing I couldn't really go out and check. The alarm ended up stopping. It kind of distracted me during the match, because I didn't know if it was my car or not... And I'm sorry to say I actually don't have an ending to this story, because I still don't know! I'll never get the answer now. It'll always be a mystery...

After the match I did my press, came back to the hotel around 9:30pm, got some dinner and just had a massage a little while ago. It's about midnight now and I'm actually in bed. I'm on the verge of falling asleep... but I'm going to answer some of your questions first! Thanks again for sending me so many of them.

Until tomorrow!

Amélie

What do you suggest as must see for someone visiting Paris? - Lynne
There's lots to see! As for restaurants, there's one with a great view of the Eiffel Tower called Café de l'Homme, which is on Place du Trocadero. With the lights of the Eiffel Tower going on every hour, it is a beautiful view when you're outside having dinner. The food and the service are good too. For other places to see... I really like the Bois de Boulogne, which is the famous park next to Roland Garros. It has beautiful scenery and I go running there during Roland Garros. Of course there's a lot to recommend in Paris, but those are two of my favorite places.

What do you think of wines from outside of France? - Dora, Australia

Apart from French wine, I would say I know the most about Italian and Spanish wine. And I do like Italian a lot. I don't know too much about American wine, although I've tasted some, and they are pretty interesting. I know that South African, Chilean and other South American wines are supposed to be good but I haven't tried them - I just know their reputations. Australian wine is a little bit strong for me... There are still a lot of wines I have yet to try!

Luxembourg 1st round win

Amelie won her first round match today in Luxembourg vs Stephanie Gehrlein 6-2,3-6, 6-0 Amelie needed 1 Hour and 20 Mins to wrap up this match she also had 5 DF 2 Aces and a serve of 56% .Amelie will play Anna Lena Groenefeld next she leads her 3-0 in Head to Head .Good Luck Amelie .ALLEZ AMELIE , GO Momo

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

A very good day in Luxembourg today!

I have some friends visiting me here in Luxembourg and they organized some karting, so we went there for about an hour and a half earlier in the day. I had a lot of fun, and the good news is nothing bad happened! It's always a bit of a concern when you do these things, but today was fine. And of course I killed them all so it was even better!! It was a great start to the day. I'm sorry to say I don't have any pictures though We were all pretty focused on the race.

We went shopping in the city this afternoon, even though the weather here isn't so nice. But you can find just about everything within walking distance, so it's very convenient. Some people do a lot of browsing and some people buy a lot of things; I'd say I'm average in that sense. We looked at some clothing and electronics stores, and I bought a few things I needed. I'll admit I sometimes get things I don't really need. Overall it was a really fun day, and we have the player party to go to later tonight, which I'm really looking forward to as well.

I'm excited to see so many of you writing questions in... I'm sorry I can't get to all of them but I'll be doing my best this week! I'll talk to you all again after my first match tomorrow...

Amélie

Which are you most proud of, reaching No.1 in the world or your Grand Slam titles? - Daniel
The Slams, definitely. It was great to get to No.1, and that was definitely a goal for me. I'm very proud to be on the list of No.1s. But when you get over the initial emotions of the No.1 ranking, you find yourself cherishing the Grand Slams a little bit more. I would say I cherish my Wimbledon title slightly more, just because of the way it ended and how I did it, coming back from losing the first set to win... It's a huge adrenaline rush. The ending of my Australian Open title wasn't the same, although of course I still cherish it. I'm really, really proud of both of them.

How did you get interested in Harleys? - Kelly & Hettie
I'm actually not sure how I began getting interested in them. I know I wanted my driver's licence for motorcycles, which is a separate process from regular licences in France (I'm not sure what it's like in the rest of the world). There was a Harley that had just come out - the V-Rod - and I actually went to get my licence for this speficic motorcycle. It was just natural to buy it, and that's the one I'm riding now. I might not necessarily be a true Harley lover, because the V-Rod is more Japanese style. But it's still a Harley! I'm happy to be a part of this big family.

What sports other than tennis do you enjoy? - Connie

I did a lot of downhill skiing when I was younger. That was a really big sport for me until I was about 18. I was skiing when I was two years old, even before I started playing tennis! When I was about 10 or 11 I had to choose between the two. The French Tennis Federation was asking me to go to their academy, and I went. I guess I made the right choice! But when I was a kid I was also doing a lot of other sports too, like soccer, handball, table tennis. I tried a bit of everything. And when I was with the Federation we had opportunitites to try other things too.

What red and white wines would you recommend? - Ellen, USA
I could talk about wine even more than tennis! This is quite a difficult question. First of all, you have to know your price range. You can spend from 10 euros up to a couple of thousand euros. There's a big gap between some wine prices. I'll just give you the names of a few good red wines from Bordeaux, a region I know very well. I would go with either Château Latour or Château Mouton Rothschild - those are two of my favorite wines from Bordeaux.
The age of a wine is very important to me. I really like old wines, especially old red wines. My favorites are from about 1959 to 1982. When you get to about 1990 it's too young, but when it's the early '80s or older, it's the typical taste, color and smell of old wine. It's just amazing. It's such a different experience, and sharing something like that with your friends is really just unforgettable.
Then onto the white wines. I would go with Château d'Yquem, particularly from 1896. I had that wine right at the site - the owner gave us the privilege to taste it right there. It was such a special experience. I bought a 1937 bottle about seven or eight years ago and said I would only drink it when I won a Grand Slam. We waited a little bit before drinking it but in the summer of 2007 we finally did. I shared it with those who helped me get to where I was. Again, sharing something like that with the people who are close to you is an unforgettable experience.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Hello again everyone!

I just came from watching my friend Pauline Parmentier playing Daniela Hantuchova. She wasn't able to win but the second set was really close, which I was happy about! Pauline was playing very well in the second set.

Apart from my practice today, I had quite a relaxing day. We started off having breakfast all together, then we went on-site for an hour and a half of practice. I was planning to go to the gym but my legs were feeling a little tight, so I chose to get some treatment and a massage, as well as some stretching. I spent the rest of the afternoon taking it easy, before coming back to the site to give Pauline a little support during her match.

I usually relax by reading, watching movies on my computer or going on the internet. I spend quite a lot of my internet time on eBay, looking to buy some wine. As you may already know, wine is one of my passions, and I'm always looking to buy good bottles at good prices. You can find a lot of good buys on eBay! I talk to my friends on Skype too. As for reading, there isn't one type of book I always read. One of my best friends is an editor and he gives me advice on what books to read and which up-and-coming young writers to look out for, and I've read a lot of good books thanks to him.

I was really happy to see so many questions come in today, and I'll answer some of them now. Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you all again tomorrow!

Amélie

When you're travelling to different cities around the world, do you ever find the time to visit historical places? - Trustus, Russia
I don't usually have much time. My trips usually just consist of tennis, gym, hotel and airports! But I did go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York this year, and saw some of Tokyo last month. I was disappointed not to see the Great Wall of China in Beijing this year. I always try to see Rome when I play there, because there's so much history there and it's so beautiful. And I did spend a lot of time in Zurich last week, as I mentioned yesterday.

I'll join in on the probably gazillion people asking you: Who will be your new coach? - Marie
This is my last tournament of the year, and I'm really just trying to focus on this week for now, and after this I'll have lots of time to find the right coach. I have a few people in mind, but I'm really trying to find the best fit, because I don't have the time to go through several people before deciding on one. I want to find the right one and I'll work with them through the off-season, then go to 2009 with them. And for those of you wondering, my old coach and I still have a great relationship. Loic and I talked just a few days ago. We're still in good contact.

It was great when you and Mary Pierce were both at the top of the game a few years ago. Are you in contact with her? - Ian

I heard from her in July, so it has been a few months. When I spoke to her she was still having injury problems, and not even able to run. She's obviously in a tough situation. But she still believes she will come back and play again. I think it will happen. She's enjoying life and really trying to come back, so I wish her the best. We had some great moments and emotional wins together, especially in Fed Cup. I can't imagine being in her situation. It can't be easy.


What is your favorite movie, and favorite actors? - Shira, Israel

I get asked this a lot and it's always hard for me to pick one! It changes all the time. I'll see a movie and love it, then I'll see another one and love that. Overall, I'd say some of my favorite actors are Anthony Hopkins and Denzel Washington, and my favorite actresses are Hillary Swank, Jodie Foster and Meryl Streep. I recently saw Mamma Mia and it was brilliant. Meryl Streep was brilliant in it. I really needed to relax and that's what I got from that movie. There's also a French movie I really enjoyed recently, called Deux Jours a Tuer. It's about killing time for two days, not killing people! It's a really interesting movie...
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Sunday, October 19, 2008

Amélie blogs from Luxembourg!

LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - There aren't many firsts left for Amélie Mauresmo. Two Grand Slam titles, the No.1 ranking, the admiration of a nation. But one thing she hasn't done yet is the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Player Blog - until now. Come along to Luxembourg as the Frenchwoman blogs from the FORTIS Championships Luxembourg.
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Sunday, October 19, 2008
Hello everyone! Hopefully you'll all enjoy reading along with my blog this week

I'm happy to be back in Luxembourg again. It has been years since I played this tournament. The tournament director has been asking me every year if I'll play it, so it makes me feel really welcome here now that I've finally been able to fit it into my fall tennis schedule. It's a nice reward for their patience, too.

From my home in Geneva I went to Zürich last week, and yesterday we came here to Luxembourg. I had a good week of practice in Zürich. I knew it would be difficult to get court time if I came to Luxembourg earlier, because a lot of the players in qualifying would need to practice, so I just stayed in Zürich. We had a chance to go into the city a little bit too - the old city of Zürich - and it was great. I did some shopping with my friend Alexia. I left Zürich at about 1pm on Saturday and I actually drove here - it's not too far, as I got to the hotel around 4:30pm.

Luxembourg is a really nice place! There's great treatment from the hotel, the people are really nice and they speak French here, which makes it feel just like home My friend Pauline Parmentier, who is also playing here, arrived last night with her coach, so we all went out to an Italian restaurant for dinner last night, and just discovered some of the city. I think lots of the players are happy when they find Italian restaurants in every city on the Tour... it's one of my routines!

My mom is also here this week. She doesn't come to my tournaments too often, which makes this week pretty special. She'll be able to enjoy the city this week and even watch some tennis. I'm looking forward to spending time with her.

We waited all day to hit on Centre Court here and I just came from there. It was a good practice and now I'm about to do some stretching and get a massage, then probably dinner. I'm not sure if we're going to go out for dinner because it's freezing here, but if we do I really hope we aren't going to walk too far!

I think I'm playing my first match on Wednesday, which will be good, because I still feel a little stiff from travelling and it gives me a few days to get used to the courts. It will also give me a good opportunity to catch up with all of you on everything, so I'm looking forward to the next few days of blogging, as well as answering the questions I hope you'll send in!

Until tomorrow,
Amélie

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Luxembourg Draw

(1)Elena Dementieva (RUS) v Q
Tathiana Garbin (ITA) v Gisela Dulko (ARG)
Anna-Lena Groenefeld (GER) v (WC)Yanina Wickmayer (BEL)
Q v (5)Amelie Mauresmo (FRA)

(3)Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) v Pauline Parmentier (FRA)
Sofia Arvidsson (SWE) v Sabine Lisicki (GER)
Sara Errani (ITA) v Marina Erakovic (NZL)
Q v (8)Sorana Cirstea (ROU)

(7)Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) v Virginia Ruano Pascual (ESP)
Q v Marta Domachowska (POL)
Peng Shuai (CHN) v Vera Dushevina (RUS)
Timea Bacsinszky (SUI) v (4)Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)

(6)Li Na (CHN) v (WC)Mandy Minella (LUX)
Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) v Mariya Koryttseva (UKR)
(WC)Laura Robson (GBR) v Iveta Benesova (CZE)
Mathilde Johansson (FRA) v (2)Anna Chakvetadze (RUS)

Her last tournament this season .Good Luck Amelie .

Monday, October 13, 2008

Horrible Loss

Amelie lost her first round Match in Zurich today losing to Victoria Azarenka 2-6 ,1-6 in an Hour and six minutes Amelie had 1 Ace ,3 DF and a serve of 67 % .Amelie has one more tournement before the end of her Season .Good luck Next time Amelie , ALLEZ AMELIE , GO MOMO

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Direction Zurich ! :

Few days old but still news .

Direction Zurich ! :
12/10/2008

Amelie left Russia yesterday and headed to Zurich where she'll compete in her next tournament...

With the desire to end the season on a positive note,Amelie will compete in the tournament in Zurich.While waiting for the schedule of play,Amelie has a practice session with the Italian Flavia Penetta and a training session.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Zurich Open Draw

Jelena Jankovic (SRB) bye
Nadia Petrova (RUS) vs. Flavia Pennetta (ITA)
Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) vs. Timea Bacsinszky (SUI)
Qualifier vs. Agnieszka Radwanska (POL)

Vera Zvonareva (RUS) bye
Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) vs. Na Li (CHN)
Amélie Mauresmo (FRA) vs. Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
Qualifier vs. Anna Chakvetadze (RUS)

Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) vs. Maria Kirilenko (RUS)
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) vs. Francesca Schiavone (ITA)
Alona Bondarenko (UKR) vs. Alize Cornet (FRA)
Venus Williams (USA) bye

Patty Schnyder (SUI) vs. Qualifier
Qualifier vs. Sybille Bammer (AUT)
Marion Bartoli (FRA) vs. Agnes Szavay (HUN)
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) bye

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Playing in Moscow




Almost but not Enough

Amelie almost beat Dinar Safina yesterday Winning the first set 7-6(2) but in to very close sets losing the match 7-6(2),4-6 ,4-6 in a marathon match that laster 2 Hours and 25 Mins Amelie had 53 UE in the match 8DF and a serve of 55% but played the best tennis she has all year long next Up is Zurich .Good Luck Amelie .ALLEZ AMELIE ,GO MOMO

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Safina and Mauresmo prefer Whirlpool

Whirlpool company taught a culinary lesson at its booth at the VIP area of the “Kremlin Cup” with the participation all of the ladies’ event players Dinara Safina and Amelie Mauresmo. Guided by an experienced chef the two players cooked two very tasty fish meals using state-of -the art processors manufactured by the world famous producer of kitchen and home electronics. The numerous tournament guests who attended the culinary clinic tasted the meals and highly appreciated the work of the two players and Whirlpool equipment.







Monday, October 6, 2008

Finally a First Round Win

Amelie beat fellow countrywoman Alize Cornet today in their first round match at the Krimlin Cup(Moscow) Winning 6(3)-7 ,6-3 ,6-4 in a match that took over 2 hours and 30 mins that produced 7 DF and 63 UE from Amelie .Next up is Safina .Good Luck Amelie .ALLEZ AMELIE, GO MOMO

Saturday, October 4, 2008

Moscow Draw

Jelena Jankovic (1) - BYE
Vera Dushevina - Nicole Vaidisova
Ekaterina Makarova - Elena Vesnina
Flavia Pennetta - Venus Williams (6)
Elena Dementieva (3) - BYE
Alena Bondarenko - Qualifier
Nadia Petrova - Qualifier
Caroline Wozniacki - Anna Chakvetadze (8)

Vera Zvonareva (7) - Maria Kirilenko
Qualifier - Daniela Hantuchova
Dominica Cibulkova - Marion Bartoli
BYE - Ana Ivanovic (4)
Svetlana Kuznetsova (5) - Na Li
Qualifier - Viktoria Azarenka
Amelie Mauresmo - Alize Cornet
BYE - Dinara Safina (2)

Friday, October 3, 2008

Amélie Mauresmo will play in Luxembourg

Amélie Mauresmo jouera au Luxembourg

Après de longues négociations ces dernières années, les organisateurs des « Fortis Championships » peuvent annoncer avec une très grande satisfaction la venue de l’ancienne numéro un mondial Amélie Mauresmo, qui s’est inscrite dans la nuit du 30 septembre au 01 octobre 2008 pour jouer les « Fortis Championships 2008 » qui se dérouleront du 18 au 26 octobre au Centre Sportif CK à Kockelscheuer.
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Amélie Mauresmo will play in Luxembourg

After long negotiations in recent years, organizers of "Fortis Championships" can announce with great satisfaction the arrival of former world number one Amélie Mauresmo, who has entered on the night of September 30 to October 01, 2008 to play 'Fortis Championships in 2008 "to be held from 18 to 26 October to CK Sports Center in Kockelscheuer.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Towards a new beginning ..

01/10/2008

"I need a fresh start to regain my best level ..."

- Amelie how do you approach your last tournament of the season?

Morally and physically I feel good. I was disappointed not to win more matches in my last two tournaments played but as I already expressed my site, I feel a lot of good things are back and my motivation is great. I feel it I miss not much to return even though I realize that I need victories to get confidence back and automation recover fully in place. I'm on the right track.

- How you live is not to be accompanied by your usual staff at the end of this season?
Well as having spent six great years alongside Loïc and with all the results that we know I had decided before leaving for Asia to resume my only way to answer some questions. Following these two tournaments, I indicated to Loïc my decision to stop our collaboration because I think I need a fresh start.

- As you have a specific goal?
My goal is to finish the year by winning a maximum of matches to stay on a high note end of the year and then back over a period of training that I will unveil in a few weeks.