There was a strong element of fate in Justine Henin's tennis career, but few foresaw what happened yesterday - the announcement that she is retiring at the age of 25 as the No. 1-ranked player in the world.
Henin attended the classic 1992 French Open final (Monica Seles defeated Steffi Graf 6-2, 3-6, 10-8) with her mother and told her that one day she would play on the centre court at Roland Garros.
Françoise Henin died of cancer two years later, when Justine was 12, not living to see her gifted daughter raise the winner's trophy four times in Paris.
"There's a page that turns today," Henin said at a news conference in Limelette, Belgium, where she has a tennis academy. "I feel no regrets. On the contrary, it's more like a déliverance [release], more of a relief."
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She has been ranked No. 1 a total of 117 weeks (only Graf, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Martina Hingis and Seles have more).
Henin has battled the cytomegalovirus, which had her bedridden for weeks in the fall of 2004, and has had chronic shoulder, hamstring and knee problems.
But none of that prompted yesterday's announcement after a mediocre start to 2008 that included titles in Sydney in January and Antwerp in February and jolting losses - 6-4, 6-0 to Maria Sharapova in Australia, 6-2, 6-0 to Serena Williams in Miami and 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 to Dinara Safina in Berlin last week.
"For the last couple of months, I haven't been able to make sense of being on the tour any more," she said. "Since Madrid [the Tour Championships last November], in fact. My tough win in the final [5-7, 7-5, 6-3 over Sharapova] in a long [3 hours 24 minutes] match was an experience that felt like the apotheosis of my career. That day, I said to myself that I had been through everything, given everything I had.
"Last week in Berlin, I came to the end of my period of reflection and I realized I no longer had the flame inside me."
The shock of Henin's exit comes after a 2007 in which she won 10 titles, including the French and U.S. Opens, and became the first female athlete to win more than $5-million (U.S.) in prize money.
It also comes exactly a year since Belgium's other former No. 1 player, Kim Clijsters, announced her retirement at the age of 23, leaving Belgium with little-known Yanina Wickmayer, No. 99, as its only top-200 player.
With seven Grand Slam titles, Henin does not rate with Margaret Court (24), Graf (22) Navratilova (18) and Evert (18) among the greats in history. But she was, until yesterday, in competition with Serena Williams (eight) for the best player of her generation.
By chance, Henin spoke to Graf, her long-time idol, on Tuesday. "She called me, but she didn't know about my plans," Henin said. "I told her and she was surprised, but she congratulated me for my career. C'était sympa [that was nice]."
Henin will be remembered for a glorious single-handed backhand that was breathtaking in both its production and its potency and as well for being a courageous competitor.
At just 5 foot 5¾ and 126 pounds, she battled, to use a boxing analogy, out of her "weight class" her entire career against women such as Lindsay Davenport and Sharapova, who were nine inches taller.
Henin, who expresses herself thoughtfully and well in French and English, was also unique (except for a list of champions mentored by their fathers) in that she spent her entire career, since 14, with Carlos Rodriguez, a transplanted Argentine, as her coach. He was seated beside her yesterday and broke down in tears before saying, "Thanks to her, I became somebody."
Henin and Rodriguez will continue to work on projects such as her charitable foundation and her tennis academies in Belgium and one that is planned in Florida.
He tied a bow on her career when he noted: "In her first year of competition [1999], she won her first tournament in Antwerp outdoors in her home country. Her last tournament, 10 years later, she won in Antwerp indoors in her home country to complete the circle."
Henin highlights
GRAND SLAM PERFORMANCES
Australian Open Champion 2004.
French Open Champion 2003, 2005-07.
Wimbledon Runner-up 2001, 2006.
U.S. Open Champion 2003, 2007.
NO. 1 RANKING
A total of 117 weeks; year-end No. 1 in 2003, 2006 and 2007.
TITLES
Forty-one, including the WTA Tour Championships in 2006 and 2007, and the Canadian Open (Toronto) in 2003 and 2007.
OLYMPICS
Gold medal singles 2004 Athens.
CAREER PRIZE MONEY
$19,461,375 (U.S.)
