AWARD CAPS GREAT YEAR FOR SELES

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 15, 1992                   TAG: 9201150032
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA                                LENGTH: Medium
AWARD CAPS GREAT YEAR FOR SELES
Monica Seles' eyes sparkled at the thought of being linked with the greatest women athletes of the century, some she had only read about and others she had admired from a distance.
After a year of glittering triumphs and embarrassing gaffes, Seles was the overwhelming choice of sportswriters and broadcasters as the 1991 AP Female Athlete of the Year.
"It means a lot to me because of all the great athletes who have won it, like Florence Griffith Joyner and Jackie Joyner-Kersee," Seles said as she learned of the vote Tuesday at the Australian Open. "To be in that group, and with Michael Jordan winning the men's award, is a really great feeling."
Seles, just turned 18, became the youngest winner since 15-year-old Olympic gold medal gymnast Mary Lou Retton in 1984.
Tall and lanky, with her trademark two-toned grunt on ground strokes, Seles won all three of the Grand Slams she entered in 1991 - the Australian, French and U.S. Opens - plus the Virginia Slims Championships while winning a record $2.5 million and succeeding Steffi Graf as No. 1.
In the balloting, Seles received 72 of 120 first-place votes and compiled 432 points. Tied with 114 points were tennis player Martina Navratilova, a two-time winner, and golfer Pat Bradley.
Gymnast Kim Zmeskal was second to Seles in first-place votes. She got 10 and a total of 72 points. Ahead of her in points were golfer Meg Mallon, who got 104, and softball pitcher Debbie Doom with 96.
For all Seles' glory, her year was stained when she abruptly withdrew from Wimbledon just before the start, failed to explain her action and went into hiding. That led to rumors of pregnancy and abortion that persisted even after she said she had shin splints.
The episode, followed by her appearance soon afterward at an exhibition where she showed no signs of injury, sullied her once pristine reputation and left her tainted in the eyes of some.
"I just really freaked," she said. "I didn't know what was going on at the time, but my agent showed me all those clippings, and even now they're still going on about it. Now if I'm injured, I'm just gonna go for it, even if I cry through the whole press conference."

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB