"People were much more open toward me, I wasn't used to that" – When Steffi Graf spoke about living through troubled times after her father’s arrest
In 1995, Steffi Graf had to face a tough ordeal after her father Peter was arrested for tax evasion relating to her career earnings. It was revealed that the former World No. 1’s father had not filed tax returns between 1989 and 1993.
Her father was subsequently sentenced to 45 months in prison, of which he served 25, and was released when Graf agreed to pay a fine of 1.3 million Deutsche Marks to the government and an unspecified charity.
In an interview for Vault, from 1996, the German athlete divulged how she lived through the prolonged trial. Graf, who was 26 years old in August ’95, said that she found out about her father’s arrest when she was deboarding a flight in Atlanta, where her brother Michael came bearing the bad news. She revealed that she had to hide away from reporters who had already flocked to her apartment in New York.
"I had to flee. I was pursued by everybody. We were always one hour ahead of them as we moved from place to place," she had confessed.
With everything going on in her life, the tennis star still found herself facing Monica Seles in the final of the US Open in the following weeks, and pulled off a bold victory of 7-6(6), 0-6, 6-3 to clinch her fourth US Open title. Upon returning to Germany after her triumph, Graf said that she noticed a surprising difference in the attitude of her compatriots towards her, despite the uncomfortable circumstances.
"A great many people approached and told me, 'It's fantastic how you stuck it out.' I got so much encouragement. People were much more open toward me. I wasn't used to that. In the past they were either very loud--'Look! That's Steffi Graf over there!'--or they didn't say anything. I had never experienced this personal approach before," Graf said.
“I wonder how I manage to survive all this” – Steffi Graf on winning 3 Grand Slams in 1995
Steffi Graf’s father’s trial had taken a toll on her mental health. She revealed that there came a moment when she just wanted to give up and quit, after hearing harsh reporting about her life on her car radio.
"At that moment, really, I felt I wanted to disappear. I pulled the car over, and I was crying like crazy. I couldn't drive anymore. That was the lowest point. I felt I couldn't take it anymore. I was thinking of quitting everything. Leaving Germany, tennis. Everything," Graff said.
However, looking back at her success in ’95, Steffi Graf, who managed to win the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open that year, confessed that she herself has wondered how she was able to pull that off during the difficult phase of her life.
"It is a question I've been asking myself for some time. My mind is not always on the court. No question. When it has been important, I have been able to shut everything out and concentrate. I wonder how I manage to survive all this. I am sometimes an enigma to myself," she said.