Dementieva announces retirement

Elena Dementieva retired from tennis after a loss 6-4, 6-2 to Francesca Schiavone at the WTA Championships in Doha. The 29-year-old Russian reached two Grand Slam finals, won the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics and helped the growth of tennis in Russia.

Place of birth: Moscow
Date of birth: October 15, 1981
Residence: Monte Carlo
Height: 1.80 m
Weight: 64 kg
Turned pro: 25 August 1998
Retired: 29 October 2010
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)

After Anna Kournikova in the late 1990s, Dementieva was the first of the current wave of Russians to reach the Top 20 in 2000. She stayed in that elite for 524 of the next 529 weeks, including this week, and she spent an amazing 328 career weeks inside the Top 10 (peaking at No.3 for five weeks in the spring of 2009).

Dementieva seemed to get better and better with age, her most treasured title, the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, coming at age 26, and her two Top 5 finishes coming at 27 and 28 (at the end of the 2008 and 2009 seasons).

In addition to 16 WTA titles, Dementieva reached another 16 finals, including Grand Slam finals at the French Open and US Open in 2004. Dementieva reached the semifinals or better at Grand Slams nine times, doing it at least once at every Grand Slam.

Dementieva was part of the first all-Russian Grand Slam final, losing the French title in 2004 to Anastasia Myskina. Later that year she reached her only other Grand Slam final this time at the U.S. Open with Svetlana Kuznetsova. Dementieva competed in 46 consecutive Grand Slams until she missed this year's Wimbledon because of a calf injury.

Dementieva is a two-time Olympic medalist, having captured Gold in Beijing (2008) and Silver in Sydney (2000). Dementieva also represented Russia in 18 Fed Cup ties, leading them to victory in 2005.

Singles
Career record: 575–271
Career titles: 16 WTA
Highest ranking: No. 3 (6 April 2009)

Grand Slam:

Year	Australian Open	French Open	Wimbledon	US Open	Win-Loss	WTA
1996						624
1997						355
1998				LQ	0–1	182
1999	2R	2R	1R	3R	11–6	62
2000	3R	2R	1R	SF	8–3	12
2001	3R	2R	3R	4R	8–4	15
2002	4R	4R	4R	2R	10–4	19
2003	1R	1R	4R	4R	6–4	8
2004	1R	F	1R	F	11–4	6
2005	4R	4R	4R	SF	14–4	8
2006	1R	3R	QF	QF	10–4	8
2007	4R	3R	3R	3R	9–4	11
2008	4R	QF	SF	SF	17–4	4
2009	SF	3R	SF	2R	13–4	5
2010	2R	SF		4R	9–3	9

WTA Championships: SF (2000, 2008)
Olympic Games: Gold medal (2008), Silver medal (2000)

Dementieva's success wasn't just limited to singles. She won six WTA doubles titles (including the WTA Championships in 2002 with Janette Husarova) and reached another seven finals. Her doubles career-high was No.5.

This season she overcame shoulder, calf and ankle problems to qualify for the WTA Championships for 10th time. But after 12 years competing at the highest level, the Russian, who celebrated her 29th birthday earlier this month, decided to retire.