Maxim Mirny is considered to be the best tennis player of the Republic of Belarus. His face is on banners across the country, his last name is on the lists of winners of the Olympics, his name is on the lips of compatriots. At 39, he remains in the elite division of the ATP tour, successfully performing in doubles. What is known about this sporting centenarian who has become a true national hero?
The beginning of the way
He is the eldest son of Nikolai Nikolayevich Mirny, who once came to Minsk with a circus tour on ice from Tula. My father worked as a lighting artist and loved the city so much that he decided to connect his future life with it. Here he met his fate - a famous swimmer named Tatyana, who became the mother of two sons - Maxim and Peter. The famous tennis player has another brother - Timothy, born in his father’s second marriage. Maxim Mirny, whose biography is well known in Belarus, learned about the separation of his parents at the age of eighteen, and this was a real shock for him.
The family was friendly and very athletic. Nikolai Nikolaevich professionally played volleyball, so his sons had a predetermined road to sports. Peter was involved in basketball, but for serious achievements he lacked the character that his older brother possessed. Maxim, born July 6, 1977, his father took him to the tennis section at the age of six and, as a professional athlete, immediately realized that he had a great future. For the sake of his son, he left the country and moved to the United States, unable to save the marriage.
Father's role
The first coach of the most famous tennis player in Belarus was Valery Lavrenov. But the main role in its formation was played by Arkady Edelman, in whom the young man trained until 1992. Having bet on another pupil - the rising star Tatyana Ignatieva, Edelman sent her to Brooklyn through an American agency, offering Mirny the role of a sparring partner for the girl. Having won a number of tournaments, the pupils brought fame to the coach, due to which, in addition, there was a line of people who wanted to visit the tennis section. Edelman decided to return to the country, and Maxim Mirny was supposed to patronize Ignatieff, engaged in her career.
It was then that the father decided to go to the USA to his son to help him in his own professional growth. Selling family values, he ended up on the American continent with fourteen dollars in his pocket. To help financially, the father did not disdain any work, getting a job as a dishwasher and caring for veterans. Selflessness was rewarded. At the age of 14, the young man was admitted by Nick Bolletieri to the tennis academy. Until 1996, Nick was the official coach of Mirny. In the future, the names of Nikolai Mirny will appear in the protocols of the ATP tour competitions, taking on the main burden of preparing his own son.
Achievements
Two years later, Maxim Mirny began to earn good money, and his father no longer needed exhausting work. The first serious success came to the athlete in doubles. In 1998, paired with 16-year-old Serena, Williams Mirny won the Wimbledon tournament, and later he won 9 more Grand Slam tournaments. And everything in the doubles, where he achieved outstanding results. In the ATP ranking, the athlete repeatedly held the first line: 11 weeks in 2003–2004, 9 in 2007 and 15 in 2012. 49 Masters tournaments were won by him with different partners. At the Olympics in London (2012), Mirny was the standard bearer of his country's team, fully justifying his confidence. With compatriot Victoria Azarenka, he won the gold medal in mixed doubles.
For several years, the Belarusian athlete has not performed in singles, but in his asset is the victory of 2003 at the ATP tournament in Rotterdam and the 18th line of the rating in the main grid of players. At his “golden” championship, the account of the Peace Victory over Ivan Lubichich, Eugene Kafelnikov and Roger Federer. Belarus regularly participates in Davis Cup competitions and even reached the final in 2004. Since 1994, defends the honor of the country and Maxim Mirny.
Athlete's Family
Belarusian tennis player 12 years married to a teacher at the Suvorov School named Ksenia. After six years of work, the young woman quit teaching, focusing on her family. Relations grew out of friendship. For Mirny, it was important that the wife did not distract from the main business of his life. But it turned out that today for him there is nothing more important than a family in which four children grow up: two little sisters (Melania and Petra) and two brothers (Demid and Trofim). Interestingly, the names were chosen at the family council and fully correspond to the pedigree of the outstanding paternal athlete.
The family lives in two houses: in Bradenton (Florida), where Maxim Mirny trains on the eve of the season, and in Minsk, when the weather allows for preparation for tournaments from April to September. The athlete often leaves for the competition, but always strives home, where the wife created the necessary comfort, decorating the walls with her artwork.
Interesting Facts
Mirny's impeccable reputation has made him the UN Goodwill Ambassador. The athletic figure of an athlete (weight - 93 kg with a height of 196 cm) can be seen on posters promoting a healthy lifestyle and calling for the prevention of HIV infection. Harmonious relations in the family became the reason why UNICEF invited Mirnykh to the project “Children without violence”. Within its framework, the father shares recommendations on the upbringing of young children.
Over the course of his career, Mirny has won victories paired with seventeen athletes. Among them are Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Ram, Roger Federer. With the Swede Jonas Bjorkman, they won the main trophy of the competition 11 times. The Belarusian athlete participated in 47 matches for the Davis Cup, having gained 57 victories, including 33 in tandem with compatriots.
About 10. 5 million dollars was earned by playing tennis Maxim Mirny. The sports center in Malinovka (Minsk district) is a joint business project of a tennis player-millionaire with his father, in the construction of which 7 million prize money were invested. The athlete graduated from BSU with a degree in International Law at a mature age. He currently owns a pizzeria in the United States and is developing new projects both in the USA and in Belarus.
Family business
The Maxim Mirny Sports Center (Gromova, 14) began to be built in 2009, and already in 2011 it opened its doors not only for tennis players, but also for all fitness lovers. It includes gyms, rooms for yoga, aerobics, dancing. To date, there is not a single Belarusian in the elite hundred of the ATP rating. The blue dream of Mirny’s father and son so that as many children as possible engage in this sport. For this, the center, called the Max Mirnyi Sport Center, has created the necessary conditions:
- Purchased special equipment.
- Created a universal coating - hard.
- Thought out a democratic pricing policy.
- Workshops of Maxim Mirny have been organized, which, after completing a career, involves focusing on the work of the center.
Present day
Today, the sports center of Maxim Mirny is under the supervision of the Honored Coach of Belarus Nikolai Mirny. 350 children are engaged in it, which is a huge achievement for the republic. The center completely exists due to self-sufficiency, without any help from the state, therefore it is actively developing the service: relaxation zone, beauty salon, medical center. But its main purpose is to contribute to the development of tennis in the country. Plasma screens are displayed in the lobby, where parents can watch the progress of their children and understand how serious the child’s passion is. The best trainers of Belarus and unique programs will help them.
They say about Maxim Mirny that he has a wonderful character: in sports - assertive and aggressive, in life - surprisingly delicate and kind. Despite his thirty-nine-year-old age, he did a lot for his country, becoming an example for an entire generation of Belarusian children.