Vic Seixas obit

Vic Seixas, a Wimbledon champion and tennis Hall of Famer, dies at 100

 

He was not on the list.

LONDON — Vic Seixas, a Wimbledon winner and tennis Hall of Famer who was the oldest living Grand Slam champion, has died at the age of 100.

The International Tennis Hall of Fame announced Seixas' death on Saturday based on confirmation from his daughter, Tori. It said the American died Friday but did not provide a cause of death.

Seixas had been the Hall of Fame's oldest member and was inducted in 1971 after a career that included the 1953 Wimbledon singles title. He also won the U.S. Championships — now the U.S. Open — in 1954.

Seixas stood out for his longevity in the sport and played in the U.S. Championships a record 28 times between 1940 and 1969, the last time when he was 45. He was also a mainstay in the Davis Cup, where he helped the U.S. reach seven straight finals between 1951-57. The Americans faced Australia in all of those finals and only won one, in 1954, when Seixas won one singles match and the doubles together with Tony Trabert.

He also won five Grand Slam titles in doubles and eight in mixed doubles.

After his playing career, he served as the tournament referee during the 1971 U.S. Open and was a three-time Davis Cup captain.

Born in Philadelphia on Aug. 30, 1923, he had lived north of San Francisco since 1989.

Seixas was ranked in the top ten in the US on 13 occasions from 1942 to 1956. In 1951, Seixas was ranked No. 4 amateur in the world, two spots below Dick Savitt, while he was No. 1 in the U.S. ranking, one spot ahead of Savitt. In 1953, Seixas was ranked No. 3 in the world by Lance Tingay. In 1954, Seixas was ranked amateur number one by Harry Hopman.

In his career, Seixas won 15 Major championships. He won both Wimbledon and the US Open in singles. He also won the Australian Open, French Open (twice), and US Open (twice) in doubles, and the French Open, Wimbledon (four times), and US Open (three times) in mixed doubles.

Seixas was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic Hall of Fame, the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame, and the Southern Conference Hall of Fame.

 

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 5 (2 titles, 3 runners-up)

Result   Year            Championship  Surface            Opponent        Score

Loss     1951            U.S. Championships            Grass            Australia Frank Sedgman            6–4, 6–1, 6–1

Loss     1953            French Championships            Clay            Australia Ken Rosewall            6–3, 6–4, 1–6, 6–2

Win      1953            Wimbledon      Grass            Denmark Kurt Nielsen            9–7, 6–3, 6–4

Loss     1953            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Tony Trabert 6–3, 6–2, 6–3

Win      1954            U.S. Championships            Grass            Australia Rex Hartwig            3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–4

Doubles: 8 (5 titles, 3 runners-up)

Result   Year            Championship  Surface            Partner            Opponents      Score

Loss     1952            Wimbledon      Grass            South Africa Eric Sturgess            Australia Ken McGregor

Australia Frank Sedgman            6–3, 7–5, 6–4

Win      1952            U.S. Championships            Grass            Australia Mervyn Rose            Australia Ken McGregor

Australia Frank Sedgman            3–6, 10–8, 10–8, 6–8, 8–6

Win      1954            French Championships            Clay            United States Tony Trabert            Australia Lew Hoad

Australia Ken Rosewall            6–4, 6–2, 6–1

Loss     1954            Wimbledon      Grass            United States Tony Trabert            Australia Rex Hartwig

Australia Mervyn Rose            6–4, 6–4, 3–6, 6–4

Win      1954            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Tony Trabert            Australia Lew Hoad

Australia Ken Rosewall            3–6, 6–4, 8–6, 6–3

Win      1955            Australian Championships            Grass            United States Tony Trabert            Australia Lew Hoad

Australia Ken Rosewall            6–3, 6–2, 2–6, 3–6, 6–1

Win      1955            French Championships            Clay            United States Tony Trabert Italy Nicola Pietrangeli

Italy Orlando Sirola   6–1, 4–6, 6–2, 6–4

Loss     1956            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Ham Richardson            Australia Lew Hoad

Australia Ken Rosewall            6–2, 6–2, 3–6, 6–4

Mixed doubles: 8 (8 titles)

Result   Year            Championship  Surface            Partner            Opponents      Score

Win      1953            French Championships            Clay            United States Doris Hart     United States Maureen Connolly

Australia Mervyn Rose            4–6, 6–4, 6–0

Win      1953            Wimbledon      Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Shirley Fry

Argentina Enrique Morea            9–7, 7–5

Win      1953            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Julia Sampson

Australia Rex Hartwig            6–2, 4–6, 6–4

Win      1954            Wimbledon      Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Margaret duPont

Australia Ken Rosewall            5–7, 6–4, 6–3

Win      1954            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Margaret duPont

Australia Ken Rosewall            4–6, 6–1, 6–1

Win      1955            Wimbledon      Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Louise Brough

Argentina Enrique Morea            8–6, 2–6, 6–3

Win      1955            U.S. Championships            Grass            United States Doris Hart     United States Shirley Fry

Australia Lew Hoad    9–7, 6–1

Win      1956            Wimbledon      Grass            United States Shirley Fry       United States Gardnar Mulloy

United States Althea Gibson