Bart McGuire, the WTA Tour's new CEO, is profiled by
Andrea Leand of TENNIS WEEK under the header, "The
Peacemaker." McGuire has "restored order to a tour
hopelessly stymied by coup attempts, back-biting and
personal agendas." Leand writes that at the Australian
Open, McGuire "addressed both players and press in a
friendly but firm manner. ... His substantive answers and
stern stance on issues such as equal prize money silenced
the sport's strongest skeptics." With the player dispute
now "behind him, McGuire lists finding a tour sponsor and
restructuring the Tour Board as his next challenges." Tour
Board Dir Bob Arrix: "[I]t has become clear in the last
month the he is the best candidate for the long term. He
has already proven his legal expertise and won the respect
of the players and press with his handling of the player
dispute. Bart doesn't care about the politics; his sole
desire is to move the tour forward" (TENNIS WEEK, 2/26).
DID THEY EVER LOOK SO NICE? DETOUR's William Georgiades
profiles the top WTA Tour players under the header, "Volley
Girls." Subhead: "Wimbledon Never Looked So Good. Women's
tennis has some fresh new faces hitting the courts. They're
a new breed with a new look. Tennis, anyone?" Georgiades
focuses on Martina Hingis, Venus Williams, Mary Pierce and
Amanda Coetzer, among others. With these young, new faces,
"a refreshing enthusiasm has returned to the game, a little
underpinning of joy mingling with the gladiatorial
competitiveness. ... There is a little glamour and life to
these girls." Hingis: "I'm glad you're doing this story on
us and not on the WNBA. We're so much prettier than all the
other women in sports" (DETOUR, 3/98 issue).
