Letter
Dear Australian Sportsman of the Century Award committee Robert De Castella,
This year there will be the Australian Sportsman of the Century award and I have finally come to the conclusion on who deserves this prestigious title – Rod Laver, nicknamed The Rocket. As you may know, Rod has broken many records in tennis. He proudly represented our country and led his team to victory in the Davis Cup multiple times. He cowrote the memoirs “The Education of a Tennis Player” (made in 1971 with Bud Collins) which focuses on his 1969 season, and “Rod Laver” (made in 2013 with Larry Writer). He is an inspiration to many up-and-coming youngsters from multiple generations.
First of all, Rod is a world record making tennis player. You see, he has achieved much more than any tennis player we have known. This year, Novak Djokovic (the current world number 1), got so close to winning his first Calendar Year Grand Slam (winning all four majors in a year) but unfortunately failed in the final hurdle against Daniil Medvedev. Did you know that Rod has won a Calendar Year Grand Slam not once but twice? That’s a world record. No one else has ever accomplished anything so great! He has also won over 200 tournaments in his career which is yet another world record! It’s unyielding to compare to what Rod has fulfilled as a sportsman and a tennis player.
In addition, Rod has acquired more unbelievable records. He had remained the longest as world number one with 7 years which is once again another record! As well as this, during the Golden Era (when Australians dominated tennis), Rod was the leader of the Australian team and carried them to victory 5 times in the Davis Cup. “He is definitely one of the greatest ambassadors in our sport without a doubt,” said Rafael Nadal, a former world number 1 (for a total of 196 weeks and winner of 20 majors).
Furthermore, he was also Bjorn Borg’s idol and has also inspired him to play competitive tennis and to even become a professional himself (former world number 1 and winner of 11 majors). Rod Laver has been an inspiration to many and has progressed tennis a long way. You see he has helped many people realise their dreams because he has shown class and set the standards. “Rod Laver for me means a lot because he was my idol when I started to play tennis. I looked up to him. I wanted to be like him,” said Bjorn Borg. This showed that Rod had really impacted his life and I’m sure that it is the same for a lot of people, including me.
Rod is such a respected sportsman in the world. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1981 and in 1985, was put in the Sport Australia’s Hall of Fame. In 2000, the Centre Court at Melbourne Park (home of the Australian Open) was renamed the Rod Laver Arena. In 2017, the Laver Cup debuted. The annual tournament features two 6-player teams (Team Europe and Team World). He has also received the MBE Queen’s birthday Honours for ‘Service to Tennis’. “For me it’s a huge honour to get the AC award for, I guess, playing tennis, playing Davis Cup, and travelling around the world on behalf of the Davis Cup team. I'm just honoured to be able to receive the award,” he said.
In demonstrating that fellow tennis players show respect for such a great sportsman, Roger Federer (former world number 1 for a total of 302 weeks and a consecutive 237 weeks, winner of 20 majors) also respects him very much. During a charity fundraising exhibition tennis tournament in 2014 (hosted by Federer), Federer admitted that while rallying with Laver that his racquet was beginning to feel heavier. This showed that he was nervous when trading shots with the superstar and that meant that he had great appreciation and respect for Laver to be there. Here, Laver helped contribute to the cause that supported education for underprivileged children in Southern Africa so you can see he has also helped out in charity as well.
All in all, Rod Laver is an amazing athlete who has broken many records. He has impacted many peoples’ lives by setting the standards and inspiring them to chase their dreams. Even I look up to him. I play tennis too and I also want to be like him because I want to feel proud and really cherish a moment in my life when I achieve something big. His life is the story of how a little country boy rose to the challenge and achieved what he believed in. There's no doubt that he is the best candidate for the award.
Regards,
Lucas Lin