Stan Wawrinka

Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka is a Swiss professional tennis player who has achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 3 from the ATP. He is best known for winning three Grand Slam singles titles at the 2014 Australian Open, 2015 French Open, and 2016 US Open, defeating the reigning world No. 1 player in the final of each tournament. Wawrinka is also an Olympic gold medalist in men's doubles from the 2008 Summer Olympics and a Davis Cup champion with Switzerland.

Wawrinka was born in Switzerland to a German father, Wolfram, and a Swiss mother, Isabelle, giving him dual Swiss–German citizenship. His father worked as a farmer and social worker, while his mother worked as an educator and biodynamic farmer. He grew up on a farm near Lausanne alongside his elder brother, Jonathan, and two younger sisters, Djanaée and Naélla. Wawrinka attended the Rudolf Steiner School in Crissier.

Wawrinka began playing tennis at age eight and changed his backhand stroke from two-handed to one-handed at age eleven. At age 15, he left regular schooling to focus on tennis, continuing his education through distance learning with the French organization CNED. Coached by Dimitri Zavialoff from childhood until 2010, Wawrinka turned professional in 2002. During his junior career, he won the 2003 Junior French Open and reached a career-high junior ranking of world No. 7.

Early in his professional career, Wawrinka made his Davis Cup debut in 2004 and reached his first Grand Slam main draw at the 2005 French Open. He claimed his first ATP singles title at the 2006 Croatia Open Umag. Wawrinka entered the ATP top 10 for the first time in May 2008 after reaching the final of the Rome Masters. Later that year, he won the Olympic gold medal in men's doubles alongside Roger Federer at the 2008 Beijing Games.

Over the following years, Wawrinka added singles titles at the 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II and the 2011 Chennai Open. He was selected as the flag bearer for Switzerland at the 2012 Summer Olympics. In 2013, he won a doubles title at the Chennai Open alongside Benoît Paire and competed in the longest doubles match in history during a Davis Cup tie against the Czech Republic.

Wawrinka attained his peak ranking of world No. 3 in January 2014 after winning his first major title at the Australian Open, becoming the second Swiss man to win a Grand Slam singles title. He later won the 2014 Monte-Carlo Masters and played a key role in Switzerland's 2014 Davis Cup victory. Prior to the 2014 French Open, he formally abbreviated his name from Stanislas Wawrinka to Stan Wawrinka for official draws and press engagements. Wawrinka considers clay his favorite surface and relies heavily on his serve and powerful one-handed backhand.