Bobbie Heine
Esther "Bobbie" Heine Miller (* 5. December 1909 in Greytown , South Africa as Esther Heine , † 31 July 2016 in Canberra , Australia ) was a South African tennis player .
Life
Heine grew up on her parents' farm in Winterton in the former province of Natal with a sister and three brothers. She learned to play tennis on a tennis court across from her school. She won several regional tournaments in a row and later the South African championships in 1928, 1931, 1932, 1936 and 1937. Already in her youth she was nicknamed "Bobbie" by an official of the South African tennis association because she gave him the nickname "Bobbie" Police officers remembered.
In 1927 she won the women's doubles at the French tennis championships with her compatriot Irene Peacock . In the same year the two reached the final of the Wimbledon Championships , in which they had to admit defeat to the Americans Helen Wills Moody and Elizabeth Ryan .
At the French championships in 1929, Heine reached the final again with Alida Neave , but had to admit defeat to the Spanish Lilí Álvarez and the Dutch Cornelia Bouman . In the same year she won singles at the Irish Championships and the British Hard Court Championships .
In 1931 she married the farmer Harry Miller and later had two children. Her husband died during an almond operation shortly after his return from military service in World War II .
In 1947 the South African wanted to try a comeback at the Wimbledon Championships. However, their plane caught fire over Egypt and crashed. Heine-Miller and the other passengers survived the accident, but all of their tennis equipment was lost.
In the following decades, Heine-Miller worked in a sports shop in South Africa and accompanied schoolgirls on trips to Europe. In the late 1970s, she emigrated to live with her family in Canberra, Australia. In 2009 she celebrated her 100th birthday there.
Double title
No. | year | competition | Partner | Final opponents | Bottom line |
1. | 1927 | French championships |
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6: 2, 6: 1 |
Web links
- Louise Maher: 10 Centenarians - Bobbie Heine Miller. abc.net.au, March 16, 2013, accessed April 20, 2013 .
Individual evidence
- ^ "Bobbie" Heine Miller
- ↑ a b Bobbie Heine Miller: A tale of a 1920s tennis star. In: abc.net.au. April 28, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016 .
- ↑ a b B. Collins: History of Tennis. 2nd Edition. New Chapter Press, New York 2010, ISBN 978-0-942257-70-0 , pp. 401, 438.
- ^ Peter Fitzsimons: Tennis legend cracks a century. In: Sydney Morning Herald. December 5, 2009, accessed September 7, 2012 .
personal data | |
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SURNAME | Heine, Bobbie |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Heine, Esther (maiden name); Heine Miller, Esther; Heine Miller, Bobbie |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | South African tennis player |
DATE OF BIRTH | December 5, 1909 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Greytown , South Africa |
DATE OF DEATH | July 31, 2016 |
Place of death | Canberra , Australia |