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To dare to live out a dream. To take a chance, to follow your heart’s desire, to leave all behind in pursuit of a dream. To sacrifice, to endure hardship, in order to live out the big moment. Many people dream, few achieve. Concepción Martínez Bernat was born in Monzón, a small Spanish town in the region of Aragón, that lies in the shadow of an ancient Moorish fortress. Outside her family’s apartment lie two cement tennis courts where Conchita would hit balls against a wall, sometimes until late into the evening. A monotonous activity soon became an obsession, as Conchita hit ball after ball against her wall, often pretending she was in big matches with John MacEnroe or Martina Navratilova. Eventually, her game outgrew Monzon, and at the tender age of 12, Conchita attended a academy for gifted athletes in Barcelona. Being away from home at such a young age proved a difficult adjustment, and Conchita struggled with loneliness and homesickness. At age 15, Conchita met a strong willed Dutchman named Eric Van Harpen who brought her to a tennis academy in Switzerland to train. It was there that she suffered, matured, strengthened, and saw her tennis skills blossom. By the end of 1989 during a solid rookie year, Conchita rocketed to the Top Ten, where she spent most of her career. Though she dreamed of glory on the red clay of Roland Garros, Conchita's shining moment came on the green grass of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, becoming the first Spanish woman ever to win a Wimbledon singles title. Conchita is a lover of privacy, shunning the spotlight and preferring to stay far from the photographer's lenses. Shy and reserved by nature, she conducts her affairs quietly and with discretion. She is known among her peers as being unpretentious, modest, down-to-earth and a genuinely nice person. Off the tennis court, Conchita enjoys cruising down her favorite stretch of highway on her Harley Davidson motorcycle, going to movies, and playing golf, beach volleyball, and soccer -Biography courtesy of come.to/conchi
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