Alexander Zverev becomes fourth tennis player to win German sportsman of the year award

Alexander Zverev (Steven Pisano, Wikimedia Commons)

Olympic gold medalist Alexander Zverev of Hamburg has been named the German Sportsman of the Year according to the ATP Tour on Monday. He received the honour despite not winning a major on the ATP Tour in 2021.

Zverev is currently ranked third in the world in the ATP rankings behind Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Daniil Medvedev of Russia. In addition to winning the gold medal in men’s singles at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021, Zverev won the 2021 ATP World Tour Finals in Turin, Italy. His other titles included the Mexican Open, Madrid Open, Cincinnati Masters, and Vienna Open. Zverev finished the season with a record of 59 wins and 15 losses.

The other three German male tennis players to be named the German Sportsman of the Year Award were Gottfried von Cramm of Sohlde, Boris Becker of Leimen, and Michael Stich of Pinneberg. Von Cramm received the honour in 1947 and 1948, the first two years the award was presented. The selection of Von Cramm those two years were interesting because it came over a decade after he won the 1934 and 1936 French Open titles.

Becker won the award on four occasions–in 1985, 1986, 1989 and 1990. During those four years, Becker won four grand slam titles. He won Wimbledon in 1985, 1986, and 1989, and the U.S. Open in 1990. Stich meanwhile won the Wimbledon title in 1991, as he defeated Becker, 6-4, 7-6, 6-4, in an all-German final.

Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl won the German Sportsman of the Year Award in 2020. He received the honour despite the fact the Oilers were beaten in four games by the Chicago Blackhawks in the best-of-five Stanley Cup Playoff play-in series three games to one.

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