Climate Changer in Retirement, Former Top Five Player Maggie Maleeva Battles to Make a Difference at Home in Bulgaria

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ART SEITZ Climate Changer In retirement, former top five player Maggie Maleeva battles to make a difference at home in Bulgaria

BY MATTHEW CRONIN

The Maleeva family be spent putting on will not be attend- a sporting event, ing the Tournament including tennis. of Champions in The Maleevas are Sofia, Bulgaria, this still very invested in coming November. tennis in Bulgaria, The most famous and even own a tennis family in the club. But that nation's history doesn't mean they didn’t attend the agree with the Bul- event’s debut last garian government year either. Not paying at least half mother Yuliya the freight for the Berberyan, the WTA Tour’s B-level most famous ten- championships, nis coach in the which last year fea- country’s history, tured a final be- nor any of her three tween Caroline former WTA play- Wozniacki and ing daughters: the “I wanted to be in a Nadia Petrova. The eldest, former top tournament situation to cost of hosting 5 player Manuela; see how I deal with the such an event runs the middle child, into the millions, former top 10 pressure. I’m just inter- well beyond the player Katerina; ested in how I feel in $750,000 it offers and the baby of those moments.” in prize money. the family, another And Bulgaria ranks former top 5 76th in the world player, Magdalena ("Maggie"), who since when it comes to per capita GDP. her retirement in 2005 has become a A sponsor may cover half the very important figure in her country. She cost, but no more, leaving the govern- and the rest of her family share this view ment picking up the remainder. Is there when it comes to tennis in their home- value for a country having players ranked land — in a country that’s struggling eco- No. 9 and up playing a tournament for In- Manuela and Maggie nomically, no government money should ternational Series (lower level) champi- Maleeva at Wimbledon. 22 ons? Some, if there are name players who sell tickets such as Wozniacki, Daniela Hantu- protests,” she said. “So they’re trying to control the press. It’s like Russia, but not as brutal. chova and Bulgarian national Tsvetana Pironkova. But it’s questionable whether the event’s in- If we protest, the police are very calm. I think the police are on our side. The government is ternational TV packages are strong enough to draw enough millions of eyes so Sofia can trying to put the people against each other. They are saying the protesters are terrorists, but promote tourism and see a substantial return on their investment. It’s a nice event for pro ten- it’s full of kids and intellectuals and nis-starved Bulgaria to have, but to one the most significant and successful tennis families in “This government will fall artists.” world — not just Bulgarian — history, it’s not worth it. soon, but they’ve been obnox- Maleeva doesn’t just talk, “I don't want to be associated if the government is involved in any way,” Maggie ious. they’re trying to control she acts, which is why for two years Maleeva told Tennis Journal in at Wimbledon. “We have had very bad governments the last running she has been voted one of seven to 10 years. For the first time since the 1990s we’re having big protests. At the moment, the press. The government is the 10 most influential women in Bul- we have the most corrupt government ever. They control the media. It’s connected to organ- trying to put the people against garia by the national newspaper Pari. ized crime. There’s an extremist [of the National party] who is controlling everything.” each other. They are saying the How many ex-tennis players can protestors are terrorists.” claim that just eight years after retirement? Outside of Martina Navratilova, who tweets links to various political articles daily? Not many ex-players are even that interested in their country’s state of affairs. One exception is two-time Slam winner Marat Safin, who’s a member of the authoritarian Russian Premier Vladimir Putin’s government. That shocks Maleeva, who like many in the tennis world remembers him as a person who liked to buck the bad parts of the tennis system, not tow the party line. —

Serena and Venus Williams are rightly called the best sister duo in history, but there has never been a sisterly troika that touches the success of the Maleeva sisters, all of whom entered the top 10 at one time or another. The youngest Maleeva was a true phenom, becoming the youngest-ever national champion at the age of 13 years and four months. She turned pro in 1989, and qualified for Roland Garros in 1990 at the age of 15. The following The Maleevas are an activist year, she reached the fourth round at three Slams. In 1995, she won three sizeable tourna- bunch. In July, Yuliya took to ments in Moscow, Chicago and Oakland, and finished the year ranked a career-high No. 4. the streets of Sofia in protest Steffi Graf still ruled the roost back then, but Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and the of a government her daughter Williams sisters had yet to come the scene, and Maleeva had a chance to have an even big- Maggie says is sure to topple. ger impact. But shoulder surgery in 1998 forced her off the tour for nearly a year and half. Then she had an epiphany or two. “I did a lot of thinking and reading then because my injuries were all the time. I also had back problems — everything. So then I came to a conclusion that allowed me to play for the next seven years without injury," she said. Her conclusion was that her injuries were psychosomatic, which wasn’t easy to This very public position is one of the strongest political statements ever made by a admit to herself. tennis player, joining Arthur Ashe’s battle to stop tennis players from competing in apartheid “They were an excuse for me not to be perfect,” she said. “And it became very clear South Africa and the Williams sisters’ refusal to play Indian Wells due to perceived racism by and I saw it. I said I don't need this excuse anymore. So I could accept losing a little better.” fans. Maleeva has no desire to be a politician, but she has plenty of refined political views. Maleeva believes that 70 to 80 percent of tennis injuries are related to mental stress. When she’s not travelling, she attends the nightly protests in Sofia. Protests have been a reg- She’s convinced that herniated discs (she once had two) actually don't cause back pain. She ular occurence in Bulgaria since February, when citizens took to the streets to protest a raise became a disciple of Dr. John Sarno, who wrote three influential books (Healing Back Pain, in utility prices. But to Maleeva, that’s not the real cause of strife. It's that the current Bulgar- The Mindbody Prescription, and The Divided Mind) about how the brain and emotions are the ian government is so corrupt and repressive that the people want real, substantial change. She source of most misunderstood symptoms. and many others were furious when the young media mogul Deljan Peewski was named as “In 1998, Manuela gave birth to her third child. I went to the hospital to see her and the government’s new head of security. it was so bad that I had to ask her to stand up,” she recalled. “I was on everything — Valium “This government will fall soon, but they’ve been obnoxious and the minister of the was the only thing that made me walk. I’m not saying that I never got injured or the pain did- interior just went on TV and said that the media should be careful as to how they report the n't exist, but I made it a lot worse by stressing so much didn't allow myself to heal.”

23 Maleeva read Dr. Sarno’s book on healing and the pain eventually went away, but she ones. doesn't like to talk about the subject much because she thinks that people with back pain “My dad is very kind,” she says. “Even if my parents fight, she always gives him might think its “some esoteric s---.” credit that he helped with us.” She started competing again in the spring of 1999 and re-entered the top 20 in A former national champion, Yuliya taught all of her daughters to play, but she 2001. But it took her a long time to get back on court, as coached Maggie the least as she was on tour with every time she was about to start competing, some fluke Manuela and Katerina. So Maggie spent a lot of time at injury would occur. She now feels the problem was in her their club, also learning from various teaching pros. Her head. father was around a good deal, but there were also times

“I got so afraid of playing again that I didn't help ART SEITZ when she was alone. myself.” “Which was possible at the time,” she said. “I In 2002, she pulled off the most impressive title would take the bus at seven years old. Kids used to do run of her career, beating three women who would were or these things. It was natural. This is one thing that society became No. 1 — Venus Williams, Amelie Mauresmo and has taken away from kids; they are meant to be inde- Lindsay Davenport — to win the then-Tier 1 event in pendent and they are meant to do these things by them- Moscow. A couple of years later though, retirement selves, but now something very natural has been taken loomed. In 2004, she married her longtime boyfriend from them.” Lubomir Nokov. He wanted to be a young dad and she Georgi helped the kids with their schoolwork, was quite pleased – and very ready to be a mom. She re- and both parents were serious about the kids’ education. tired the following year and was pregnant a month later. But while Manuela and Katerina graduated from high She never won a major, but Maleeva says she school, Maggie did not. When she was 15, Bulgaria fell has zero regrets. A 5-foot-6 creative counterpuncher, she into in turmoil and she went to Switzerland to live with hung with the elite for much of 15 years, won 10 WTA sin- Manuela, who at the time was married to her coach, Fran- gles titles and earned $4.4 million in prize money. cois Fragniere. Maggie had the option of finishing in a spe- “I’m happy with the way things turned out,” she cial athletes school, where she would have been handed said. “How can I ask for more?” It would be obnoxious.” a degree, but she considered that hypocritical so she stopped. — “But I was the kind of kid who always read books, so they weren’t worried about me.” Maleeva is committed, proactive and likes to Reading nutritional books over the years in- take matters into her own hands. Always conscious of spired the youngest Maleeva’s food business, which ac- what she ate, she began to make her own organic food tually started when she tried a locally-produced organic after she retired and then founded her own organic food yogurt, and liked it. It had poor distribution, so she helped company, Harmonica, which distributes yogurt to various it reach the stores. Her husband became very exited organic food stores. During that time she gave birth to a about the project and they created their own organic girl named Yuliya, then a boy named Marko, and last sum- brand, which now has 20 products. mer a girl named Nina. She says that being a parent has Reading nutritional books also exposed her to been one of the best experiences of her life, but unlike the dangers of climate change, so early on in her retire- many new parents, that becoming one didn't change ment she founded the environmental organization much of her overall outlook. But she did call it a com- Today, Maggie Maleeva (top, strolling with 11-month-old Nina) is a busy mother Gorichka, which takes policy positions, holds events that pletely different experience that can’t be compared to of three whose interests range from climate change to organic foods. Above, center sustainability and shows Bulgarian citizens that anything else. Maleeva (second from right) hams it up with employees of her natural foods there are real solutions to real problems. company, Harmonica. “What’s been a very big influence on me is I’m “Its funny that sometimes in Bulgaria some people see amazed at how children are so dependent on their par- me and make comments about me not as tennis player, ents and how they turn out, they learn so much from their but as the person who started Gorichka,” she said. parents’ example. The big thing for me now is that when I look at all the problems in the world, Unlike in the U.S. and parts of Western Europe, in Bulgaria, there are no farmers I think that it’s because someone has been a bad parent.” markets packed with organic fruits and vegetables. Bulgaria has been a member of the Eu- Yuliya was a good parent and teacher, but so was her dad, Georgi. Back in the ropean Union since 2007, and the EU has given the Bulgarian government money to develop 1980s, it wasn’t as common for fathers to be as involved in child rearing as they are now (as organic family farms. Maleeva's husband is), but Georgi stepped when Yuliya hit the WTA road with her two older “Somehow, it never reaches the people,” she said.

24 It’s rare to find an ex-touring pro who doesn’t miss competing, and Maleeva is no Many players of Maleeva’s generation, as well as today, will say that the main rea- exception. She was playing at pretty high level at Wimbledon in the senior doubles, when son they play is because they love sport and they just want to have fun and enjoy it. But she and Brit Lucie Ahl beat Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver. In 2011, she made a brief Maleeva doesn't believe it. comeback in Fed Cup, playing and winning three doubles matches. It's one thing to play dou- “It’s impossible to do it, and they are not very sincere and we weren’t sincere either bles in your 30s, but in 2010, at the age of 35, she decided to play the Bulgarian national out- when we gave press conferences,” she said. “I wish we could just say how we really felt. door championship and won it, becoming the youngest and the oldest player to have won it [Ernests] Gulbis is probably right — that no one is really telling the truth.” — 22 years apart. “I wanted to be in a tournament situation to see how I deal with the pressure,” she — said. The Maleevas are clearly a principled and tight-knit bunch. While Maggie was playing senior doubles at Wimbledon, eldest sister Manuela came along to babysit Maggie's youngest, the 11-month-old Nina. The sisters still see each other frequently, and Maggie says that they’re not only close with each other, but with their respective nieces and nephews. Family matters a great deal to them, as does the future of their country. In “we weren’t sincere when we mid-July, their mother was out wav- gave press conferences. I wish ing a flag on the streets of Sofia. we could just say how we re- Manuela frequently posts Facebook updates on the protest. And Maggie ally felt. [Ernests] Gulbis is is out there telling everyone who will probably right — that no one is listen that climate change is the really telling the truth.” biggest issue that her generation faces. A few weeks after Wimbledon ended, the political situation was once again heating up in Bulgaria. When there was little government response to protests, Reading nutritional books exposed some people blocked Parliament and prevented some officials from leaving the building. Po- Maleeva to the dangers of climate lice stepped in and the situation escalated into violence. Maleeva rails against the govern- change, so she founded the envi- ment like she’s putting together a another crisp crosscourt and down-the-line combination. ronmental organization Gorichka. She says Bulgaria is the least energy-efficient country in Europe, but the goverment is saying it’s a good idea for the country to keep its coal plants and its plans to build nuclear facilities. She’s less than pleased with the school system, which has all but abandoned physical edu- She says the reason she’s still playing isn’t because she misses the competition, but cation. Bulgaria has a Green Party, which would seem a natural fit for Maleeva, but they are because she’s testing her emotional growth through sports. inexperienced and don't have a strong leader. That leader could be her, but she says she “I’m just interested in how I feel in those moments,” she said. “When you’re up 5-4 doesn't want to put herself out there to that degree. and you know you have to go for your shots, to move forward or go to the net and you’ve “I would never be in politics in Bulgaria,” she said. “I’m a concerned as a citizen. I worked on this so many times. I wanted to see how I would react, whether I would be able think what we do through our business and our little NGO, we try to be conscious of what is to do it or get nervous again.” happening, but I would never go into politics because I would be completely destroyed. The So what was the result of her great self-experiment? bad people control the media and there are only a few independent media.” “It was the same,” she said with a deep sigh, but then added that she could actu- There are people in her country who have asked her to take a larger and more for- ally laugh about it. mal role. But she’s a mother of three young children, and while she tries to be hopeful, she “Sometimes I got really stressed because I was supposed to beat most of the play- also sees her country’s dark side. ers and I said to myself, ‘Why did I put myself in this situation? I hate it. Why I am I here?’ And “People who can do a good job don't want to be in politics because they don't see I reminded myself that I wanted to come and play and I could laugh and react.” a way out,” she said. “Sometimes I wish I could go back five years and I could try again,” she added. “You A few weeks after Wimbledon, Maleeva wrote to say that the Bulgarian government think you know things better, but then I remind myself that in my last seven or eight years I is still attempting to maintain its grip on power. It's already been a long summer. She’s not one was injury-free and I made every single decision and I know how I made it. I was very con- to back down, but many of her fellow citizen protestors haven't had the experience of grind- scious of what I wanted to achieve and what I wanted to do and that was the best I could to ing out one match or another and discovering victory at the end. do. But I do wish I enjoyed it more. You play the biggest venues, but you’re so worried.” “People are tired and losing hope,” she said.