Tennis has been described as one of the most difficult sports, not only in the physical sense but also in the mental aspect. Many careers have been hindered by injuries or mental health issues. Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli had to say goodbye to the sport when she was at the top of her game and later battled serious health issues.
Bartoli was born in 1984 in Le Puy-en-Velay, France. She was introduced to tennis at the age of six by her father, Walter, who was a doctor but decided to coach her and continued to work with her for most of her career, despite having no prior experience.
It was he who taught her to play with a two-handed forehand and backhand, inspired by the great Monica Seles. With this unorthodox approach, Bartoli became an aggressive and hard-hitting baseline player. At the age of 16, she began working her way through the tour, but she had to persevere for 12 years before finally winning one of the sport’s biggest trophies.
Her Wimbledon triumph
Bartoli reached her first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in 2007, beating Justine Henin in a tough semifinal. She famously said that seeing Pierce Brosnan, one of her favorite actors, in the royal box gave her the motivation to win the match. However, she was defeated by Venus Williams in the final.
Bartoli with the Venus Rosewater Dish (Getty Images)
She had to wait another six years to reach a second Wimbledon final, beating players such as Elina Svitolina, Camila Giorgi, and Sloane Stephens en route. In the final, she defeated Sabine Lisicki, who had eliminated Serena Williams. At 28, Bartoli didn’t drop a set throughout the tournament and became the woman with the most Grand Slam appearances before winning a title (47).
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Other career highlights include reaching a career-high ranking of world No. 7 and making the quarterfinals of all four majors. In total, she won 11 WTA titles and earned more than $11 million in prize money. However, shortly after her biggest victory, she had to step away from the game due to persistent injuries.
Her Battle with an eating disorder
After her unexpected retirement in 2013, Marion Bartoli raised concerns in 2016 when she was hospitalized with what she then described as a “mysterious virus.” Years later, in 2023, she revealed the truth: she had been battling an eating disorder.
“It was definitely the most challenging moment of my life,” Bartoli told The Guardian in 2023. “I [was] slowly and gradually getting to anorexia. First of all, it was a desire to just lose weight, and then after that, it became an obsession. What was my strength during my career—my mental strength, whatever was in front of me, to make it happen—that played against me. Because when you’re mentally so strong and you tell yourself not to eat, you can push that very far, which I did,” she explained.
Marion Bartoli in 2016 (Getty Images)
“I damaged my body and I damaged my health massively. My parents were there trying to help me out. But when you’re in that state of mind, you just don’t accept help,” she said. It was thanks to an intervention from Philip Brook, the chairman of the All England Club, that she eventually sought help.
As she was set to play in the legends event that year, he told her she couldn’t participate due to the risk of a heart attack on court. Bartoli said she was shocked by that statement, but it ultimately helped her.
“Wimbledon, in a way, saved me,” Bartoli said. “That’s why it was so special—because Wimbledon made me, and Wimbledon saved me three years later. If I didn’t have that wake-up call, I would probably have kept going down and down further.”
She then spent six months in an Italian hospital on a feeding tube. Just months after her release, she completed the New York City Marathon, finishing in five hours and 40 minutes.
Marion Bartoli in 2019 (Getty Images)
“I went out of the hospital, took a plane to New York without any training whatsoever—seriously, nothing,” she said. “I finished in front of my parents, my nephews, with my brother. It was such an emotional moment. That was my renaissance.”
Motherhood and coaching
Since then, Bartoli seems happier than ever. She took on a part-time coaching role, working with 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko and mentoring several young players. Off the court, Bartoli built a media presence, becoming a familiar voice and face in tennis commentary through her work with the BBC.
In 2018, Bartoli attempted a comeback, but recurring pain in her right shoulder forced her to abandon the plan. “To my dismay, I must unfortunately stop my attempt to come back,” she wrote at the time.
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Bartoli also entered a new chapter in her personal life, becoming a mother in December 2020 with the birth of her daughter, Kamilya. When asked whether she hopes her daughter will pursue tennis, Bartoli said, “I want her to find a passion… whatever that might be, and then go at it 100%,” she said. Just as she did.
