Charlotte Cooper (tennis) facts for kids
Cooper in 1900
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| Full name | Charlotte Reinagle Cooper Sterry | |||||||||||||
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| Country (sports) |  United Kingdom |
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| Born | 22 September 1870 Ealing, Middlesex, England |
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| Died | 10 October 1966 (aged 96) Helensburgh, Scotland |
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| Plays | Right–handed | |||||||||||||
| Int. Tennis HoF | 2013 (member page) | |||||||||||||
| Singles | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam singles results | ||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | W (1895, 1896, 1898, 1901, 1908) | |||||||||||||
| Doubles | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam doubles results | ||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | F (1913) | |||||||||||||
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | ||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | 3R (1914) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Charlotte Cooper Sterry (born Charlotte Reinagle Cooper; 22 September 1870 – 10 October 1966) was an amazing English tennis player. She won the famous Wimbledon Championships five times in singles. In 1900, she also became an Olympic champion. When she won in Paris on July 11, 1900, she made history. She was the first woman to win an Olympic tennis title. She was also the first individual female Olympic champion in any sport!
Contents
Charlotte's Early Life and Tennis Career
Charlotte Cooper was born on September 22, 1870, in Ealing, England. Her father, Henry Cooper, was a miller. She learned to play tennis at the Ealing Lawn Tennis Club. Her first coaches were H. Lawrence, Charles Martin, and Harold Mahony.
She won her first big singles title in 1893 at Ilkley. Between 1893 and 1917, she played in 21 Wimbledon tournaments. This shows how dedicated she was to the sport! In her first Wimbledon appearance, she reached the semifinals. She lost to Blanche Bingley Hillyard in that match.
Charlotte won her first singles title at Wimbledon in 1895. She beat Helen Jackson in the final. It was an exciting match where she was losing 0–5 in both sets but still managed to win! In 1896, she won Wimbledon again. She successfully defended her title against Alice Simpson Pickering.
From 1897 to 1901, Charlotte Cooper Sterry and Blanche Bingley Hillyard shared the Wimbledon titles. Charlotte won in 1898 and 1901. Blanche won in 1897, 1899, and 1900.
In 1902, her final match against Muriel Robb was stopped because of rain. They had to replay the entire match the next day. Muriel Robb won that day.
In 1908, Charlotte made history again. As a mother of two, she won her last singles title at Wimbledon. She was 37 years old, making her the oldest ladies' singles champion at Wimbledon! This record still stands today. She also held a record for reaching eight straight singles finals until 1990.
Besides her singles wins, Charlotte also won seven mixed doubles titles. She won five times with Harold Mahony. She also won once with Laurence Doherty and once with Xenophon Casdagli. In 1913, she reached the final of the first Wimbledon women's doubles event. This was 18 years after her first Wimbledon title!
She also won the singles title at the Irish Lawn Tennis Championships in 1895 and 1898. This was a very important tournament back then.
At the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, women were allowed to compete for the first time. Charlotte Cooper Sterry won the tennis singles event. She beat Hélène Prévost in the final. This made her the first female Olympic tennis champion! She also won the mixed doubles title with Reginald Doherty. They beat Hélène Prévost and Harold Mahony in the final.
In 1901, she won the singles title at the German Championships. In 1902, she won the Swiss Championship. Charlotte kept playing competitive tennis even into her 50s!
On January 12, 1901, she married Alfred Sterry. He later became the president of the Lawn Tennis Association. They had two children. Their son, Rex, was a vice-chairman of the All England Club. Their daughter, Gwen, also played tennis at Wimbledon.
Charlotte Cooper Sterry had been deaf since she was 26 years old. She passed away on October 10, 1966, at the age of 96.
In 2013, she was honored by being added to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Charlotte's Playing Style
Charlotte Cooper Sterry had an exciting and attacking style of play. She liked to move forward to the net whenever she could. She was one of the few female players of her time who used an overhead serve. Her best qualities were her calm attitude, smart playing, and steady shots. She was also excellent at volleying, which was quite rare for women's tennis players back then.
Images for kids
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Cooper in 1900
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Charlotte Cooper Sterry vs Blanche Bingley Hillyard at Eastbourne
See also
In Spanish: Charlotte Cooper para niños
