YOUNGEST GRAND SLAM WINNER - MARTINA HINGIS

Youngest Grand Slam Winner in the history of tennis, Martina Hingis at 15 years 282 days

Growing up, just like many, I spent most of my time after school hours playing with my friends. Be it cricket, hand tennis, badminton or just about any game - everyday this ordeal was followed without fail. I thank my parents for not getting me the video games or any of the gadgets! 

Coming back from play, I used to switch on the television and straight away select the sports channel and watch many of the sporting contests that were being streamed live or recorded on the two sports channels available on cable network. Life was simple and one didn't need any aid of remote controls to switch channels as I did my homework during the commercial breaks. I just had to ensure my sister was was not around and I was relieved when she was still out playing or talking to her friends. 

This routine was easy in the months of June and July as there were no unit tests, assignments or the pressure to study. Wimbledon was a tournament that coincided with the beginning of a new term at school. While we were adapting to new subjects, teachers, uniforms and lot of other things, Wimbledon remained a very popular topic. 

Life got even better in the year 1996, when a certain teenager won the hearts of many like me - it was the beginning of an era, the era which saw Martina Hingis take giant strides towards stardom. As I watched that year's Wimbledon coverage, she was on the verge of becoming the youngest grand slam winner at the Wimbledon.

CZECH REPUBLIC AND SLOVAKIA COMING TOGETHER

In the singles, the progress of Hingis was smooth until the fourth round, where she had to face Steffi Graf, which the German had no difficulty and won comfortably in two sets. 

In tandem with Helena Suková (Czech Republic), Hingis (born in Slovakia) found an able partner - this mixture of raw talent and experience proved to be a lethal combo. The first three rounds went by with ease and the first fierce challenge of their campaign came in the quarter-finals when the eighth seeded duo faced Jana Novotná and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario - the top seeds. 

Novotná and Sánchez true to their billing started off very well, won the first set 6-3 and seemed like they had the match under control. Things began to get close in the second set as the determined Hingis and Suková matched their opponents evenly - the set was to be decided by a tie-breaker. Unlike other games in a set, the tie-breakers require optimum concentration. A slight opening gave Hingis and Suková to make a comeback in the match. They won the second set.

Two crucial breaks in favour of Hingis and Suková and they had beaten the top pair of the tournament. Winning against a top team provided them the much needed impetus as they won both semi-finals and finals in closely fought three sets. 

History was re-created as Martina Hingis claimed her maiden Grand Slam title - the youngest to hold a Grand slam trophy across the eras. She was just 15 years and 282 days - and narrowly nudged the previous record holder, Lottie Dod (singles title at Wimbledon in 1887) by just three days. 

GEORGE BASTL AND THE LAST OF SAMPRAS - 2002 WIMBLEDON

The end of an era - Pete Sampras just played his final Wimbledon game

Injuries, the single impediment for any athlete's progress comes unexpectedly - disrupting the plans, goals and in some cases one's career. Even with the latest technological aids and medical facilities available, the coping and recovery mechanisms are not formulated to suit everybody. While one recovers and continues to play their sport, others might have to look for alternatives beside sport.

This has been the case with George Bastl, the tall Swiss who emulated the feat of his fellow country man Roger Federer in 2002. Perhaps, the only common thing Federer and Bastl share in tennis happens to be 'Sampras' and defeating the champion on a territory which the American had made his own. If Roger Federer won a closely fought encounter in 2001 (4th round), George Bastl's triumph had the shades comparable to David overcoming Goliath. On a Wednesday, what people thought about being another opponent for Sampras progress - it came as a shock to see him ousted in a second round match to a lucky loser ranked 145 in the world.

GRAVEYARD OF CHAMPIONS

Oh yes, the superstitious and the infamous patterns keep coming no matter what. Not very often you find big names play outside of Court No. 1 or the centre court. The second round encounter between the seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras and the unknown George Bastl was scheduled at Court No.2 - also known as the 'graveyard of the champions'. As it turned out, the second round match was the last time Sampras played at the All England Club.

HOW IT UNFOLDED

The crowd could not believe what was happening as Bastl raced to a two-set lead. It appeared as though Sampras was not in his best frame of mind. He was seen reading notes between the games written by his wife Bridgette Wilson - "Remember, you're the greatest player who has ever held a racket in the hand". It did fire him up and the next two sets, he showed his aggressive game as Bastl found it difficult to break his serve or put any pressure on it. The American won 6-4, 6-3 to make it two sets all.

Those words from his wife kept Sampras going - only to a point

Enter fifth set and this is where the mental game of the players came into play as bodies started to worn out. Sampras had seen it all before and importantly he knew how to win from such situations  - whereas Bastl had never won a five-setter before after turning professional. He had nothing to lose and unless he won this encounter, he knew this would be just another match.

The games raced, one by one with each player holding his serve. In the eighth game with Bastl serving, Sampras had two break points while leading 4-3. From 15-40 down, Bastl served his way to level the scores and then remarkably broke the American's serve in the next game. Just when Sampras seemed like getting back to his ominous rhythm, Bastl played four perfect points to break his serve. The match was turned all of a sudden and so did the fortunes. Sampras, unless he had something else to showcase was staring at his worst exit at Wimbledon since 1991. He sat motionless, looked out of sorts and it took time to face the fact - he's out of the tournament.

LAST TIME AT WIMBLEDON

No matter what one's past records are, it is a challenge to remain at the top of the game consistently with time. If Sampras was outdone by one Swiss in 2001, the next year another Swiss knocked him out. "I have not lost the game, Bastl won it. At the end, he was mentally much stronger than I, and that you have to recognise". The drama, the disappointment and the pain of such a defeat only showed what a great champion Sampras was throughout his career, especially in Wimbledon. At the press conference after the defeat - "I plan on being back. I'm not going to end my time here with that loss. I really felt I could do it here and I feel really bummed out. I feel like I can win one major - I will continue to play."  It wasn't that Sampras played badly or was in poor form. Those 'two words' can be a dampener to give credit where it is due. Bastl played the game of his life and after all, Sampras did went on to win the US Open a few months later.

George Bastl played the game of his life to oust the seven-time champion 

A DECADE LATER

Unlike Roger Federer, George Bastl didn't even make it to the top 70 in his entire life. The win over Pete Sampras remained his only shining glory of his career. Ask any of the tennis fans, they remember Bastl for that reason - and for that alone. His life post that match changed and he was recognised by quite a few people on the circuit. While tennis career never took off, he had to focus on other avenue to sustain his livelihood. He earned a finance degree from a university in California and now works in the same industry. Over the years, any interview with Bastl is incomplete without being asked about 'that' match. Those wonderful memories remain just that - memories. 

NO GRAF, NO NAVRATILOVA - THE 1994 WIMBLEDON CHAMPIONSHIPS

Conchita Martinez won the 1994 Wimbledon title defeating nine-time winner Martina Navratilova

The 1994 Wimbledon championships is remembered for a lot of reasons. Who can forget Conchita Martinez and her fairy tale win. Her triumph was against the veteran Martina Navratilova - who previously had won the coveted Wimbledon singles title nine times. If this made a 'headline to remember ' for Conchita Martinez; at the start of the tournament, Steffi Graf made headlines which she would like to forget.

UPSETTING THE TOP

Consider this for a record - before the start of the 1994 Wimbledon, Steffi Graf had entered quarter-finals in all of the Grand Slams since 1985. The German who was the defending champion, had won this title five times and since 1982, no other player apart from the German ace and Martina Navratilova had won the singles title. Then came the unlikely upset - the defending champion Graf knocked out by an unseeded player in the opening round.

Lori McNeill knocked the defending champion Graf in the first round - a feat never witnessed before

In 1992, Lori McNeill playing at the Virginia Slims Tournament (WTA sanctioned event) had achieved a similar feat against Graf. It was rare for a player like Graf to suffer a loss in the opening match of any tournament. Playing in New York at the Madison Square Garden, McNeill on that day played a better game to overhaul the German. If that was at the indoor carpet surface, a year and a half later, on the lush grass courts of Wimbledon, Lori McNeill did it again. Graf's loss to McNeill marked a defending champion lose an opening round match for the first time. 

NO GRAF, NO NAVRATILOVA

Lori McNeill continued her impressive start and went all the way till the final four. She lost a close semi-final clash against Conchita Martinez, with third set decided at 10-8 in favour of the Spaniard. The American emulated her best performance at the grand slams (semi-finalist at the US Open 1987) and Martinez went on to win her first and only title of her career.

After a wait of more than ten years, there was a new name etched on the ladies single's title. Navratilova, as it turned out, played her last singles game at the grand slams (she continued playing doubles) while Steffi Graf won the next two Wimbledon editions before bowing out of the game for good in 1999 after losing to Lindsay Davenport in the title clash at Wimbledon. 

MITA, WHO?

Golf and Land Club, Wannsee, Berlin - place where Mita Kribben lost her life during World War II

Mita Kribben (aka Mita Klima) was born in Austria while the country was still a coalition under the Hungarian-Austrian empire. The exact year of birth is not known and sources, a couple of them point to the years between 1892-1894. Apart from this conundrum, there is no doubt that she took part in the 1907 Wimbledon ladies singles championships along with her elder sister Willy Klima.

Prior to the creation of ATP ranking system in 1973, the tennis world relied on the opinions of the famous British sports journalist and historian, Lance Tingay. His annual World Rankings formed the reference point in identifying the top ten players of the world. In one of his books, 'The Guinness Book of Tennis Facts and Feats' published in 1983, he has few words on the Klima sisters. According to his research, Mita Klima was 13 years of age when she took part in the 1907 Wimbledon championships. He also mentioned Willy, Mita's elder sister to be older by an year.

Going by this reference, Mita Klima holds the record till date to be the youngest ever player to take part in the singles championships at Wimbledon.

YOUNGEST EVER

Mita Klima played her first round match against Madeline O'Neill and she lost in straight sets 1-6, 2-6. There is nothing more to add to her Grand Slam tally. Mita Klima's record has stood the test of time and only one player came close to emulating her record, Jennifer Capriati. Capriati was three months past 14 years when she made her Wimbledon appearance. Unlike Mita, she reached the fourth round of the championships, continuing her splendid form she displayed at the French Open (semi-finalist) few weeks earlier.

The lack of evidence of the life of Mita Klima apart from Lance Tingay's reference makes a good case for a debate on Mita's exact age at the time of her Wimbledon appearance. Apart from appearing in occasional trivia columns during Wimbledon, there isn't much that's documented on the tennis life of Mita Klima.

MITA, WHO?

Eight years after her Wimbledon appearance, she married a German tennis player Otto Curt Kribben, who also owned a factory. Her life post marriage is not well documented up until 1930's. She worked  as the club secretary at the Golf and Land club at Wannsee district, Berlin. Even when Berlin and entire Germany was at war, the Golf club entertained few celebrity golfers as this remained one of the few golf courses that was open during the war.

As the war intensified, little by little, the golf course started to look more like a military playground. Two airstrikes on the place caused no damage. It is documented that a golf match took place on April 20, 1945  at Wannsee. Towards the end of World War II, the Red Army had their trenches placed and their artillery grenades destroyed building and the cellars underneath the towers of the clubhouse.

Amidst this carnage, Mita Kribben lost her life. 

IT HAPPENED IN AUSTRIA - THE UNPOPULAR TEAM ORDER

Far from tears of joy! Image Courtesy - ESPNF1 

It might be a super-hero movie cliché but there is a lot of merit to this line - 'you always have a choice'. Looking back, if Michael Schumacher felt Rubens Barrichello deserved the win (at the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix), he would not have crossed the finish line ahead of his Brazilian teammate. The two Ferraris might have been stranded few metres before the chequered flag, egging each other to cross the line first. Nothing of that sort happened - in a matter of few seconds, Michael Schumacher benefitted from the team orders. Team orders are fine, but personally I felt, this was one occasion where the Ferrari think tank went a bit overboard.

Having said that, Formula One is a team sport, it is a business with all the commercial jargons packed in and served to us twenty times a year. It is the ultimate prize in motor-racing and it is also an expensive affair. Teams invest a lot and everybody strives to win. Yes, it is all about winning - but at what cost?

PERILS OF A NUMBER TWO DRIVER

I am a Ferrari fan and an ardent admirer of Michael Schumacher. But on the Sunday of 12 May 2002, I didn't enjoy that particular victory a lot. Yes, it was 1-2 Ferrari, but there was more to it. Even in business, some situations are not crystal clear unlike the well-penned points in a contract and yes, Rubens Barrichello deserved the win irrespective of the championship situation. It wasn't the first time such a fate has met a driver. Team orders have been issued by all the big teams and in fact even Michael Schumacher was driver number two, helping Eddie Irvine during the 1999 season. Coulthard was the regular man Friday to Hakkinen on numerous occasions in 1998 and 1999 and not to forget, Damon Hill helped Alain Prost win his fourth world title in 1993. The examples can go on... but i hope you get the gist of what I am trying to say here.

IT HAPPENED A YEAR AGO

At the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix, Michael Schumacher was behind the race leader Juan Pablo Montoya trailing by 1.6s. The fight was getting intense and on lap 16,  Michael tried to pass into the right-hander at turn two; Montoya did well to block the racing line but went wide and didn't leave any racing line to Michael Schumacher, which forced both cars to go off-track. No damage done, however a line of cars - Barrichello, Verstappen, Coulthard, Raikkonen and Olivier Panis went past them. Schumacher summed up the incident - "The fight had been fair until the incident, then he tried to take me out at the corner, and I had to go on the grass because I couldn't turn in on him. He wasn't looking where he was going, he was looking where I was going'.

Montoya tries hard to stop a quicker Schumacher at the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix

Schumacher upped his pace and was in third position by lap 28. Coulthard in second position and the other Ferrari driver Barrichello, led the race. Schumacher soon joined this duo and 0.9s separated the top three places as Michael Schumacher was first to pit on lap 46 and two corners later ran wide losing few tenths of a second on his out-lap. A lap later, Rubens Barrichello pits and comes ahead of Michael Schumacher. The race was now in the hands of Coulthard and his team of mechanics. Coulthard stayed on track for two more laps before coming in to the pits on lap 50. Eight seconds stationary (it was the era of refuelling!!!) and emerged out of the pits as the race leader. Twenty one laps remaining, the championship contender from McLaren was in the lead with the Ferraris behind him. With Mika Hakkinen's woes continued, it was already established that, it was the Scotsman who would lead the championship battle from McLaren. The win for Coulthard would narrow Schumacher's lead in the title race.

The race order remained this way - Coulthard, Barrichello and Michael Schumacher. With less than three laps to go, Jean Todt called on Barrichello to inform him to give way for Schumacher to have those extra two points. Rubens waited...the cars were at the fading stages of the penultimate lap, the race order remained the same... all eyes were on Jean Todt as he discussed with Ross Brawn and called on Barrichello once again as the cars crossed the finish line for one last lap - "Rubens, it's the last lap, let Michael pass for the championship, let Michael pass for the championship Rubens, please".

Rubens did let Michael pass in the final corner and thereby picking up those additional two points. Yes, it was disappointing for Rubens but one has to remember, Formula One at that point was (and still is) a team sport and Ferrari were not the first ones to employ such tactics to help a driver win the championship. With Coulthard's unexpected victory, the points table was a lot closer. Michael Schumacher led the championships by four points to David Coulthard's 38 points and Rubens Barrichello had only mustered eighteen points. 'If I hadn't been close to Rubens the team would not have asked. Ferrari might have a different philosophy to McLaren, who have also used this strategy in the past. Imagine, how it would be if we got to the end of the season and lost the World Championship by two points'. 

There is a lot of merit to this argument (Eddie Irvine lost to Hakkinen in 1999 by two points) - but what happened next year at the same venue was nowhere close to this.

NEXT YEAR WAS NOT THE SAME

Strictly, there are no comparisons from these two races. In 2001, Michael Schumacher was dominant in most parts of the race and one might argue, barring for few racing incidents, he did deserve to win the race. Besides, the championship battle was tighter in 2001.  

In 2002, it wasn't the case. First and foremost, Rubens Barrichello did an excellent job of being the fastest driver in the warm-up, took the pole position and led the race for all laps but for the final corner when he had to yield to Michael Schumacher and this time, it was for the victory and no, there was no championship at stake. Yes, team orders has influenced results to benefit a team and a driver, but on that day, Schumacher coming in second place would not have mattered.

Rubens did everything right...which deserved him to win the race... Team orders went bonkers! 

Moments later, both drivers make a mockery of the ceremony protocol, Michael refused to stand on the top step and instead asked Rubens to stand. German national anthem was heard loud and clear across the track, while it was a Brazilian standing on the top step. When it was the time for Italian national anthem, both Ferrari drivers stood on the podium and there were no signs of joy or the excitement in spite of winning the race 1-2. And to end it, the trophy was presented to Michael Schumacher which he quickly passed on to Rubens Barrichello, who happily accepted it.

THE REPERCURSSIONS

At the end of the day, it was a bad call by the team. Ferrari was winning virtually every race they took part and media houses had to find something to pinch the Italian team. Crowd booed Michael Schumacher and he admitted in the press conference 'it was not a right choice' and 'he derived no joy from this victory and it was not the way he had envisioned to win in Austria for the first time'. It was a wrong choice though Rubens was aware what his role with Ferrari was when he had signed a fresh contract few days earlier.  

Barrichello takes home the trophy while Schumacher gets 10 points... Image Courtesy: Grand Prix Magazine

Michael Schumacher in his position within the team could have argued against the top management's decision to let him pass, perhaps he didn't push it hard as he still had to focus on driving. FIA summoned the team and drivers were questioned in a disciplinary hearing while many writers wrote the race being one of the sad days in Formula One. No, it was a far cry from being sad. If you want to term a sad day in Formula One, then look at the drivers who died racing. That is sad and cruel - and what happened to Rubens was just bad luck and a glimpse at the competitive and human side of Formula One. 

ALMOST A PERFECT GRAND SLAM YEAR - MARTINA HINGIS IN 1997

1997 French Open was the first Grand Slam tournament Hingis took part ranked as number-one women's tennis player. She was the youngest and only the seventh tennis player to achieve numero uno, since the computer system was introduced in the 1970's.

She was on a winning streak of 31 matches and had not lost a single match in 1997. And then, freak! She got injured: cruciate rupture of the left knee and was advised a break in excess of a month. This happened in the third week of April and with five weeks to go for the French Open, she found herself unable to straighten her left leg. She underwent arthroscopy, and during this frustrating time, her fighting mode comforted her and as soon she felt good, her first words to herself were: "I am Martina Hingis, and I will be back".

HER PASSION FOR HORSES

Martina Hingis took to horse riding at age eleven. With time, it became her greatest passion, more than tennis at times. Riding was convenient, as there were horse stables close to her former residence at Trübbach. Though riding on horses isn't exactly safe for a tennis player, Hingis was quick to saddle up on those horses, found at ease and off-she went!

Her mother cum coach Melanie always encouraged horse riding as she felt it would be a welcome change for Hingis from the rigours of training and playing tennis. This was Hingis's unique way to relax and round off a training session. Accidents were not new while she was on the horse, but it never was serious. In fact, during the 1997 Australian Open, which she won, in the second week of the tournament, she had a fall from a horse and that never came in the way of winning her maiden Grand Slam singles title.

But few weeks later, it was a different story. While she was riding high and winning every match she took part in, the horse fall came at the most unexpected time. "It was not my own horse and we went for a few jumps towards the end. I was tired and for the first time I felt something like fear". Fear does creep in when you are no longer the 'underdog'. Martina was number one favourite and people expected this sixteen-year old to perform 'miracles' each time she went out on the court. The clay court season was about to begin - Hamburg, Berlin and Rome leading up to the premier clay event at Roland Garros. She was number one now and she must not get injured, those thoughts came to her mind while she was on the horse one day and next moment, she experienced the ill-fate Humpty-Dumpty did in the nursery rhyme (had a great fall).

1997 FRENCH OPEN

35 days was all it took for Hingis to be back on the tennis court. Without any practice, she enters the clay courts of Roland Garros and wins her first match. In her second game after the comeback, she was under pressure. The Italian Gloria Pizzichini, after taking the first set was five points away from winning the match. The bounce-back ability of Hingis kicked in, she broke Gloria's game, took the second set and then breezed her way through to the next round, which was a walk in the park against her future doubles partner Anna Kournikova.

"I knew that if I made it to the second round I would become dangerous". Barbara Paulus, the sixteenth seeded Austrian showed some fight - but was not able to sustain the pressure to cause an upset.

THE LAST WEEK

This is the business end of any Grand Slam. The last three matches and much tougher opponents. How will Hingis and her body hold up? Was age on her side, which normally helps to heal and recover much quickly? Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, winner of two French Open titles leading up to this match (in total she was won three, the last of which was in 1998) found no rhythm and not once was she in the game. 6-2, 6-2 in favour of Hingis and next up was the third seeded Monica Seles at the semi-finals.

The three-time winner at the Roland Garros was good, but nowhere as frightening as she was before the stabbing incident in 1993. The match went close, really close into the third set. Both players moved around the court in search of that pivotal 'break' in the opponent's serve - it was Hingis, who managed to hold on and win 6-4 in the third set. Her wins for 1997 had now stretched to '37' and looked set to win her second consecutive Grand Slam title.

   

YOU JUST KILLED ME TODAY

Iva Majoli, the nineteen-year old Croatian was in her first Grand Slam final. Though she had come through a string of wins against good opponents, the pundits gave her no 'chance' against the world number one. Bulk of the crowd, the experts, hoped she would give a good fight to the child-prodigy Hingis, who was the clear favourite. Few minutes into the game, it was anti-climax. Majoli, the ninth seed was in total control and the 'underdog' tag helped her to play more freely. Hingis was unable to contend Majoli as the Croatian took the first set 6-4. In second set, the top game of Majoli continued and forced Hingis to make errors one-after the other, and soon she delivered the upset by taking the set 6-3  to become the first Croatian to win a Grand Slam.

"I don't know why, but something wasn't going the right way, the way I wanted it on the court. If something didn't work before, I always had another weapon to get out of the pressure, but today, I didn't have anything, and she was just better".

Holding the runner-up platter, Hingis was shocked about her own inability to have answers to this onslaught by Majoli. "I won 37 matches this year and you're the only one who beat me". With no past champions in the finals since a decade, the crowd saw a newly crowned women's champion and against the odds, Majoli was the one who prevailed in the finals of two teenagers.

"I was feeling like an underdog, but that helped. I knew she was confident, but I knew she's not unbeatable. My plan was just to attack her serve, put more pressure on her forehand, just be aggressive. Luckily, today everything worked", the joyous Majoli after she became the lowest-seeded woman to win a Grand Slam in the Open era.

The French Open finals was one such occasion which tested Hingis, the mental aspect of a high pressure match coupled with her physical ailment - a raw occasion of how Hingis would react when things didn't seem to go her way. Mind you, Hingis was the number one player and with it came different expectations. Did these expectations weighed heavily under crunch situations, just like she found herself against Iva Majoli? Hingis took a strategic bathroom break, the break did no good. On the last game of the match, Hingis took an injury timeout and treated herself to a massage and did few extension exercises to her left leg (the one she had surgery five weeks ago), but to no avail.

"Maybe I didn't play my best tennis in this tournament, and my serve will always be a little problem, especially if I'm getting tired. In a Grand Slam, you just don't feel every day in your best shape" - conceded Hingis after her first loss of the year.

ALMOST A PERFECT YEAR

Post Roland Garros, all eyes were on Hingis to see if she could live up to the initial promise and hype. In a month's time, she claimed the most sought after trophy in tennis, the 'Wimbledon' defeating Jana Novotna and few months later, she faced Venus Williams at the Flushing Meadows and won it comfortably 6-0 6-4 to cap off a almost perfect Grand Slam year.

The year 1997, more than any other time in her career, she displayed her repertoire, be it the variations in height and length, the chess-like plays, those use of drops and lobs. With each victory, her fame grew and the Swiss teenager became the talk of the tennis town. Praises and superlatives were common and why not; Hingis was in a zone of almost perfection, a state which most tennis players aspire to reach and only few have attained that state of 'nirvana'.

Hailing from a country which is obsessed with patterns, formula etc, Hingis and her tennis always had a surprise element or two. Her opponents, and even spectators had a tough time adjusting to her unpredictable play. Defeats came rare as though it didn't exist in her playbook for most parts of the year. Hingis of 1997 was simply a level better than her opponents. With 75 wins in 80 games, twelve victories in 13 finals, she played one of the best seasons in the history of tennis.

In 1997, very few could refute the fact that, she played as though she was one of the most complete tennis players of all time.

THE RACE THAT GAVE US THE NAME 'WALL OF THE CHAMPIONS"

Michael Schumacher was one of the three world champions to crash the wall, thereby got its name "Wall of the champions"

Hitting the wall! There is a huge difference using that term in running and motor racing. While it is a case of mental block in running and have all the time to get out of it, which is contrary to what happens in motor racing. In recent times, Formula One has done away with heavy banked roads, and thereby there is a decline in number of cars hitting the wall. However, there are tracks like the one in Montreal, where the 'wall' at the end of turn 13 has gained reputation for being a 'breaker' if a car hits it. Since 1978, a lot of cars have hit the wall, cars were removed or safely parked and race moved on. However, in 1999, 'the wall' got all the attention.

On that day, the wall which had 'Bievenue au Québec' (Welcome to Quebec) written on it had four hits, three of them driven by the world champions and gave birth to the term 'Wall of the champions'.

WALL OF THE CHAMPIONS

13 June 1999, sixth round of F1, Canadian Grand Prix. Michael Schumacher took his first pole position of the 1999 season. That race had four world champions - Mika Hakkinen (1999), Damon Hill (1996), Jacques Villeneuve (1997) and two-time world champion Michael Schumacher (1994 &1995). It will go down as one of the unique races in the history of Canadian Grand Prix as all four drivers made headlines though only one of them ended up finishing the race.

Prior to the 1999 race, the wall at the end of the final chicane and located opposite to the entry of the pit-lane was just another part of the track. Each year, one saw many drivers shaving their cars to the wall, just enough to avoid a crash. However, many drivers in a bid to make up time or extend a lead have crashed owing to imbalance of the car after exiting the final chicane.

FOUR HITS TO THE WALL

The race was an attrition and at the end of it, it had more number of retirements (12) than the finishers (10). On the very first lap, there were three casualties - Alexander Wurz retired due to transmission problems while Jean Alesi and Jarno Trulli collided with each other and took each other out of the race. Safety car!

Lap three, the first of the wall hitters, Ricardo Zonta, got his BAR-Supertec sideways in an awkward position which caused him to hit the wall. Zonta's car was parked next to the wall and this made the stewards to call the safety car back on the track.

The race resumed its normalcy on lap seven and there was no drama up until lap fourteen when the first of the three world champions, Damon Hill spun-off the track and hit the wall. He was not having a good season with Jordan and his woes continued as he had his third retirement out of six races. When asked about it, Hill replied - "Basically, I lost the control of the car and I hit it. There is nothing more to it, really!".

Then came the surprise, Michael Schumacher having led the race was beginning to up his pace in order to build a suitable gap as he was nearing his pit stop window. Each lap, from lap 25 was three-tenths faster than Hakkinen and with each lap, he was pushing his Ferrari really hard. On lap 29, just few metres away from starting the next lap, bang!. Schumacher lost control of his car coming out of the chicane and he was off the racing line, thereby the car was on the dirty part of the circuit, which is always slippery. The car slewed and before he could react, the car had hit the wall which wiped out his front and rear suspension. He shook his fists in frustration as he knew, he had thrown away this race! - "I lost control of the car because I went off the racing line and got on the dirt and ended up in the wall. This was clearly my mistake. I usually make one mistake a year. I hope that this incident was the last for the season".

Now that Schumacher was out of the race, this was now Hakkinen's race to lose. The first round of pit stops was not far away. While the teams and few drivers were getting ready for their fresh tyres and fuel, Jacques Villeneuve on lap 35 became the third world champion to hit the wall. Safety car for the third time on the track. "It was my mistake - I was simply going a little bit too fast. There was a lot dirt down on the track at that point, it was easy to make a mistake".

CHEQUERED FLAG UNDER SAFETY CAR FOR THE FIRST TIME

While the safety car was about to be called on-track, a lot of teams executed their pit stop and the cars were back on track without any significant changes. Lap 40, the safety car came in and within seconds, David Coulthard and Ferrari's Eddie Irvine both push each other out of the track, no damage done, and rejoin the track. All this meant, Mika Hakkinen was on his own now with no one to challenge him from the top runners. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was the last casualty of this race. He was running in second position before brakes failed and his car crashed a barrier. This incident put Giancarlo Fisichella to second place and Eddie Irvine third. With just three laps to go, safety car was called on to the track for the fourth time! In the penultimate lap, just before the final chicane, all cars had lined up behind one other. 

If safety car went in, that would have made a spectacular last lap, especially with the proximity of cars at the first and second turns and at the hair pin! Sense prevailed and safety car was not called in and race culminated with all cars finishing behind the safety car - making this the first instance of a race in Formula One completing under safety car regulations. Irony! as it was at the Canadian Grand Prix (1973), the safety car was first deployed in a F1 race.

Sixteen years hence, the circuit remains one of the most demanding for the cars and drivers. 'Wall of champions' still continues to play a significant role and it remains to be seen, if it has any impact on the outcome of this year's Canadian Grand Prix.