The 52-year-old tennis icon finds that maturing is about acceptance, learning and health. "Each decade brings special gifts,'' she says.   By Dave Scheiber, Times Staff Writer Published September 25, 2007   [Times photo, 1971]

In 1971, teenaged "Chrissie" Evert faced Billie Jean King in St. Petersburg. "I think I have a very special relation with the St. Pete-Tampa area," Evert said recently.

Though she teaches tennis and organizes a signature tournament for charity, Chris Evert has shifted her focus to her three sons.

Former champion Chris Evert plays in her annual Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic, which she spends a lot of her time organizing.

She is an American icon, a South Florida native who helped infuse women's tennis with personality, style and some of the game's greatest moments in the 1970s and '80s.

Chris Evert will always be remembered for what she achieved on the court in her teens and 20s - the winner of 18 Grand Slam singles titles, a record seven French Open crowns and the best win-loss singles record of any pro tennis player ever.

But she also became a pop culture presence for decades, whether pitching products on TV or making headlines for the ups and downs in her love life: her engagement to Jimmy Connors, her marriage in 1979 to British tennis star John Lloyd, and their divorce in 1987, then her well-publicized marriage to Olympic skier Andy Mill in 1988, and less than a year ago, another painful divorce. Now reports have her romantically linked to pro golfer Greg Norman.

Today, at 52, Evert is not just older but wiser. She feels more fulfilled than ever by motherhood - she and Mill have three young sons - by running the Chris Evert Tennis Academy in Boca Raton and the Chris Evert Tennis/Raymond James Pro Celebrity Tennis Classic Nov. 2-4.

I first met Evert in 1987, interviewing her for a Sports Illustrated profile in the wake of a knee injury that had sidelined her for five months - and her breakup with first husband Lloyd. She was in Largo to play in the now defunct Eckerd Open, at the Bardmoor Country Club

What I remember most is not that this would become the last singles title of Evert's Hall of Fame career; it was her refreshing candor, insightfulness and self-effacing manner during our interview.

Twenty years later, Evert returned my call on her cell phone: She was picking up her boys from school.

And I discovered that she hadn't changed one bit.

What are the things most important to you now in this phase of life?

"You know what? Health takes over looks."

She laughed - the first of many during our conversation - then continued:

"Let's put it that way. I think when you're in your 20s and 30s, you're very concerned about how you look. And at 50, it's like, 'Aahhh, the most important thing is to be healthy,' because that's when things start kicking in ...

"That's when your bones are a little different and you're not as fast as you used to be; you don't have the energy level you used to have. And I think that the important thing is staying active. I feel (I'm) active physically and in my mind.

"Those two things are very important."

What keeps you busy?

"I'm not the typical Boca woman who likes to have lunches and have her nails done. I mean, some of these women just are dripping in jewels, with the lunches and the hairdos, and they've never earned a cent in their lives.

"And not to put them down or anything, but I like to go and I like to be stimulated. So the academy stimulates me and I'm there in the mornings, and then at 3 o'clock, sure enough, like, I'm making two trips in the car. Now I'm going to pick up my 10-year-old because they get out about half an hour apart.

"So it's all about the kids and play dates and sports after school."

Are you involved in one-on-one coaching or in more of a supervisor's role at your academy?

"I think I average about four mornings there a week and I usually have two or three kids on my court and I'm there for two hours. So I'll cover six kids one morning, six kids the next morning.

"In a period of two weeks, I try to get through everybody - all our full-time (students). But I'm not doing one-on-one lessons . . . And I'm not supervising the coaches either, because we have a great coaching staff. They know more than I do."

It sounds as if you've created a normal life. You have all these demands on your time, but you're there shuttling your kids around and doing the things that just anybody would do.

"You know what? I'm not commentating on TV anymore. That was (finished) three years ago and, you know, I have a few endorsements from my playing days, but I put my energies and time into my academy and to my charity event in November. And we've raised about $15-million so far (to help children and families at risk due to drug and alcohol addiction).

"Then there are my kids, and the fourth is me.

"My kids come first, obviously, but I don't want to travel any more. I don't want to go anywhere to make money. Either people will come to me or I say no to the deal because I really think my three boys - they're now 10, 12 and 15 - need me. They need me especially this year."

Obviously it's been a hard year, with your divorce (last December). How are you and the kids doing in that regard?

"It's been a tough year. It's been a tough year, but, you know, the most important thing is the love and communication, and that's been there. And it's eased it a little bit. Still, it's been tough.

"But the kids have a great relationship with both of us, and that's the most important thing - when you (are a child with) divorced parents, it's important that you realize that the parents aren't divorcing you. They're just divorcing each other and you can still have a great relationship, and some relationships even get better."

Can you tell us a little about your kids?

"Alex is 15 and he played on the high school tennis team, and he loves tennis and golf. And Nicky is 12 and he's No. 1 on the middle school (tennis) team, and I'm going to actually go watch a match this afternoon.

"All three of them love skateboarding. They like the extreme sports. Colton, my 10-year-old, is probably the best of all of them. They snowboard when they go out to Aspen.

"And they're really good athletes, obviously, because my ex-husband was a very, very good athlete. And they're great kids.

"They just fight all the time among themselves. That's my one criticism - you know, if they'd just be peaceful. They're very competitive, so they're always trying to outdo each other.

I've read that you said motherhood is the most fulfilling part of your life. True?

"Yeah. I think because I was in such a self-absorbing profession as tennis - and any champion has to be selfish and self-absorbed - it was a welcome change when I had kids and I felt that giving feeling.

"And I had retired by then, so I had 100 percent emotion to give to them, and it was really a nice change to care about somebody else besides myself."

What kinds of things do you do to keep in shape now? And are you active with tennis?

"Those four mornings a week, I'm playing tennis with the kids, playing for points with them. We have some good juniors, and they keep me in shape cardiovascularly, and the only other thing I do is Pilates twice a week."

What do you recommend for people over 50 to stay in shape?

"Well, what I would recommend is cardiovascular workouts. I think women can get that just by fast-walking.

"Just get out and walk a few miles and get a good pace, brisk pace, so your heart rate's going a little bit."

You have a history with St. Petersburg. Do you have fond memories of playing here?

"I've been coming to St. Pete since I was like 8 years old, for the state tournament. We had state there every year, so I was there as a junior playing state, and then I was there as a professional playing those tournaments. So, yeah, I think I have a very special relation with the St. Pete-Tampa area."

Do you manage your own finances?

"My father takes care of my money. He's always taken care of my money. You know, when other management firms wanted to, he was, like, 'Nope!'

" . . . I just said, 'Dad, be conservative and don't lose any money.' And he never did."

Would you say you feel wiser, more confident at this phase of life?

"I certainly feel wiser. I think you feel more confident in your own skin the older you get.

"And I think each decade brings special gifts. I just feel like in your 40s, you're really starting to come into your own. You start to get what life is all about, and you start to know yourself the best.

"And then the 50s - you kind of better find out in the 50s, for sure."

How have your 50s been so far?

"They've been fine. You know what? The 20s were silly. That's all I can say. That was silly.

"And then in my 30s, I began to have my family and it was really starting on the way to life. In the 40s, I started to get more wisdom, but by the 50s, like I said, there are no masks.

"I mean, I am who I am, and I can accept my faults and my strengths. And I think you're just more accepting of yourself and you're hopefully kinder to yourself."

And not many aches and pains?

"Not yet. I want to be healthy. I can't stretch wide for the shots like I used to. I can't move as fast as I used to, so, yeah, you've got to be careful. I can't be going out there thinking I'm 18 again, you know?"

Looking back on this past year, is there anything that you've learned about yourself?

"I learned that I'm far from being perfect. So that trick you learn, too."

Dave Scheiber can be reached at (727) 893-8541 or scheiber@sptimes.com.

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Chris Evert

Born: Dec. 21, 1954, in Fort Lauderdale

Married: to former tennis player John Lloyd, April 1979, (divorced 1987); to former Olympic skier Andy Mill, July 1988 (divorced 2006)

Children: Alexander J., Nicholas J., Colton J.
Career highlights:

U.S. Junior Championship, 1970, 1971
U.S. Open, 1975-78, 1980, 1982
Wimbledon Singles, 1974, 1976, 1981
Wimbledon Doubles, 1976
Australian Open, 1982, 1984
French Open Singles, 1974-75, 1979-80, 1983, 1985, 1986
Virginia Slims, 1972-73, 1975, 1977, 1987
European Women’s Open, Geneva, 1987
Eckerd Open, 1987
Retired from professional competition, 1989
Special adviser to U.S. National Tennis Team
International Tennis Hall of Fame Board of Directors
Womens Sports Foundation trustee
Florida Sports Foundation Board of Directors
Women’s Tennis Association president,
1982-91

Awards:
Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, 1974-75, 1977, 1980
Sports Illustrated Athlete of the Year, 1976
Women’s Sports Foundation Greatest Woman Athlete of Last 25 Years, 1985
Women’s Sports Foundation Flo Hyman Award, 1990
Korbel, Top 10 Romantic People, 1989
International Tennis Hall of Fame , 1995.
U.S. Lawn Tennis Association Top Women’s Singles Player, 1974
National Honor Society, St. Thomas Aquinas High School

Sources: Who’s Who in the World, Who’s Who in America

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What tennis says about Chris Evert

Former star Pam Shriver:
“I keep in touch with Chrissie pretty regularly, a lot of it’s electronic and voice mail. We see each other once or twice a year.
“I played her like 25 times in singles. We played with each other in doubles . . . She was one of my best friends on the tour even though I was always trying to chase her down.
“I find her funny and insightful about life. The thing that I like most about Chrissie is her sense of humor. It’s amazing: It’s not like she’s book smart or has a four-year degree from Stanford or whatever. But she has a lot of life smarts . . .
“I have a lot of admiration for her.”

Pioneer Billie Jean King:
“She’s great for her academy. Anytime a kid can hit with her, listen to her, be around her, watch her practice, it’s a great learning experience.
“She’s so intense. She’s just a champion when it comes to her intensity. In the ’80s, I used to say, 'If you can see Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert practice, that’s practicing. Because most of the kids don’t have any concept of intensity. None.
“It’s great for kids to be around people like her because she’s a champion.”

Former star and current TV
analyst Mary Joe Fernandez:
“She’s done a great job of giving back. She’s a role model growing up, being from Florida . . .
“She’s in the best shape — when you see her, she looks fantastic. What I love is that her charity has raised so much money for abused children and moms who’ve been on drugs.”

Larry Scott, CEO of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour:
“I’ve made a point to get to know her and keep her involved. She’s still an iconic figure in women’s tennis, somebody people look up to . . . Chris still has an important voice in the game.”

[Last modified September 24, 2007, 13:13:47]