Former world number one Martina Hingis is to marry Czech tennis
player Radek Stepanek.
The 26-year-old Hingis confirmed news of her engagement at a
media conference at the Gold Coast on Friday where she is preparing
to play the Australian women's hardcourt championships.
Hingis said 28-year-old Stepanek, ranked 19 in the world, had
proposed to her in Prague last month but it was not until she
arrived in Australia that anyone noticed her diamond ring.
"I was surprised when it was spotted right away because in
Switzerland I've been walking around for a month and no-one's said
anything," she told reporters.
"I guess people here pay more attention to things."
Hingis dominated women's tennis in the late 1990s, winning the
Australian Open three times in a row from 1997 to 1999, before
ankle and foot injuries forced her into early retirement in
2002.
She took three years off before making a comeback last year,
finishing the season ranked in the world's top 10.
Stepanek will make a comeback of his own at next week's
Australian men's hardcourt championships in Adelaide. He reached
the quarter-finals at Wimbledon this year but has not played since
after dislocating a disc in his neck.
(China Daily via Reuters December 30, 2006)