Athletes > Patty Schnyder > Bio

The following biographical information was provided by TENNIS.COM.

Switzerland's leading lady
Everyone knows which male tennis player will be flying the Swiss flag at the Beijing Olympics - 12-time Grand Slam champ Roger Federer.

But it might not be as obvious on the women's side. Patty Schnyder, a WTA Tour veteran, will be doing most of the work, competing in both the singles and doubles events (along with partner Emmanuelle Gagliardi).

Steady Swiss
Although Schnyder has just one Tier I tournament victory in her career (Zurich 2002), the southpaw makes up for it with her remarkable consistency and the ability to stay near the top of the WTA rankings. Since 1997, her worst season-ending singles rank has been No. 37 (in 2001); every other year has been No. 26 or better. She reached a career high No. 7 in the world in singles back on November 14, 2005.

Husband by her side
Schnyder's husband, Rainer Hoffmann, is also her coach. They've developed a bond that goes beyond most marriages because of the unique circumstances of life on tour. "We've known each other so well, and we stick together in all those situations," said Schnyder. "It's the same in tennis. He's really a very smart guy and has an eye for the game, which helps me a lot. Yeah, it's just great to be with him and talk about tennis with him, talk other things with him. Just having him around, it feels me so much better."

Someday, Schnyder and Hofmann are planning to publish an autobiography titled "The White Mile". She spoke about the book at a press conference at Wimbledon 2007. "It's our story, especially most of the part is also going to be with my husband together, some ups and downs we had, some tough times. But also then the funny side of the tour. I mean, 12 years traveling, you see many people, many funny stories, things happen. Yeah, it just like takes you through all the -- yeah, all the faces of tennis."

A woman's touch
A modern-day "Battle of the Sexes" took place in 2002, and Schnyder was part of the featured match. She defeated Patrick Mayr, an Austrian regional champion ranked No. 1162 in the world at the time, by a 7-6, 7-5 score in front of a sellout crowd.

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