For several years, one of the great tennis champions of the modern era has existed as a kind of ghost.
Monica Seles won nine titles from Grand Slam, seven of them before turning 19. With her two -handed blows on both sides and her ability to hit the lines from anywhere, she was considered a phenomenon. It spent 91 consecutive weeks as number 1, disputing 34 tournaments during this period. Reached the final in 33 of them.
In April 1993, Seles and Steffi Graf vying for supremacy at the top of the sport when a Graf -obsessed fan stabbed Seles during an event in Germany. She returned after more than two years of physical and mental torment and promptly won another Grand Slam title, even when the place where she displayed her tenistic skills no longer seemed safe.
Seles reinventing himself as he carried the weight of what had happened. She retired from tennis in 2008, continuing to play screenings alongside other stars, including John Mcenroe and Chris Evert. Also guided younger players.
But since 2019 Seles, 51, born in Yugoslavia, practically disappeared from the view of the public. Around that year, she began to experience double vision and extreme weakness in her arms and legs. I saw two balls coming toward you on the tennis court instead of one.
“I thought, ‘Okay, I’m going to get over it,'” Seles said in a VideoChamada of his house in Florida. “But some episodes have happened – in the court and in daily life – and I realized that there was something wrong.”
After a while, she sought medical advice, which was not easy to achieve when 2019 turned into 2020 and the Covid-19 pandemic began. Her doctor referred her to a neurologist, and after two years of testing and examinations, she was diagnosed with Miasasthenia Gravis, MG, commonly called in Brazil Severe Myasthenia, a chronic autoimmune disease that affects 150 to 200 people around the world. The immune system attacks the neuromuscular junction – the path through which nerves and muscles communicate.
Its symptoms, which include the double vision and muscle weakness they have experienced, can come in phases, making it difficult to obtain a precise diagnosis.
“Patients may have fatigue, and then health professionals do not know what to do with it,” said Beth Stein, director of Neuromuscular Diseases at St. Joseph’s Health in New Jersey.
What follows is a kind of reverse treasure hunting, in which doctors perform a series of tests to eliminate deadly threats such as brain tumors. Antibody tests may confirm MG, but some patients do not have them.
“When I first received my diagnosis, I had never heard of this in the news or anyone else,” said Seles.
For Seles, MG brought another reinvention, the process that tennis players live by point to point, play to game, set to set and departure the match throughout their careers. Her return to competitive tennis after stabbing took place at the Canada Open of 1995. She won the title, losing only 14 games on the way. He lost the US Open final to Graf before reinventing herself again to win the Australian Open in 1996. The process defined her career and, to some extent, her life.
“After leaving my old country to the IMG Academy, I had to fully reinvent me,” she said.
“When I became number 1, it was a great reinvention because everyone treats you differently. So, obviously, when I was stabbed, it was a huge reinvention. And when I was diagnosed, it was a huge reinvention,” he added.
“The part of everyday life, managing this, depending on my symptoms, is really an adjustment. I think anyone who has myasthenia gravis knows it’s a continuous adjustment.”
In a few days, Seles can play tennis and pickleball and walk with their dogs. She makes sure to play with people who understand what she is living. Still, “a few days are very extreme.”
This can be difficult to accept for a higher level athlete. Sports are part of her DNA, and they wondered who she would be if she couldn’t train and compete. Again, she resorted to her tennis experiences and some of the challenges she faced in life.
“After my stabbing, I had to deal with it internally for a few years to process, and my MG diagnosis was very similar,” she said. “I had to understand my new normal in everyday life, what I can do in terms of work and different things.”
Seles plans to attend US Open in New York this month for an awareness event about their condition. She also intends to watch some tennis games while there. The sport remains a large part of her life, and she follows him closely. During his interview, he said he was telling the hours to the Canada Open final between Victoria Mboko and Naomi Osaka.
“In women’s tennis now, none of us know who will win any tournament that will follow, and that’s great,” he noted.
She accompanied the return of Venus Williams, 45, with particular attention. Wimbledon’s semifinal between Aryna Sabalenka and Amanda Anytimova fascinated her, while her heart sank to Anysimova when Iga Swiatek defeated her 6/0 Double in the final.
She would like to make some comments on television. I’ve done some previously and loved it.
“I personally love to hear Chrissy, obviously,” said Seles about Chris Evert, former player who became a commentator. “It can cover so many different generations and have expertise. She has so much life experience, which I think for the younger generation, it’s so important to hear.”
In fact, she has. Still, there may be no one in tennis that has more life experience than they are.
