Carling Bassett-Seguso

Canadian former professional tennis player Carling Bassett-Seguso reached a career-best singles ranking of eighth in the world in March 1985. She was also ranked 51 in the world as a doubles player in January 1987.

Bassett-Seguso won the Canadian junior title in 1981, and was ranked the second-best junior player in the world by the following year. By the time she was 16, Bassett-Seguso had become Canada’s best tennis player. Her career also briefly included a stint as a fashion model with the Ford Modelling Agency, and as an actress. In the latter capacity, she starred in the 1982 comedy film “Spring Fever”, and appeared in an episode of the television show “The Littlest Hobo”.

In 1983 Bassett-Seguso reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. In the same year, she also won her first major tournament with victory at the Virginia Slims of Pennsylvania. Her best performance at a Grand Slam came in 1984 when she reached the semi-finals of the US Open. Bassett-Seguso had success as a doubles player, reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in 1984, and the US Open in 1985. Bassett-Seguso competed in both the singles and doubles tournaments at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. She retired later the same year. Bassett-Seguso was named as Canada’s Female Athlete of the Year in 1983 and 1985. She was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.