PureDWTS 14 If Only I Could Get Into The Mind Of Martina Navratilova To See How It Ticks
There are a couple of good reads on Martina Navratilova out there about her dancing on Dancing With The Stars. Since I’m a tennis fan and I’ve always been fascinated with the way Martina could out mental her opponents on the tennis court, I’m especially curious and fascinated to know if she’ll bring that same fierceness and wicked determination and intensity to the dance floor? When Martina has taken on something in the past, she goes full bore physically and mentally. I also love it when women who are in their 50’s and 60’s+ are still very much out there physically and mentally keeping up with people half their age and still very much having something to say. What’s more and for those that don’t know, Martina has recently had a bought with Breast Cancer and she broke her arm playing ice hockey. 2010 wasn’t a very good year for her as you can read for all the things that happened to her in a take below from Hello Magazine.
It has certainly been an eventful year for the 53-year-old.
“First, I broke my arm in January playing ice hockey… Then my tooth fell out as I was flying to Europe with my arm in a cast. It was really comical,” she reveals.
“Then I get cancer and it was only February, and I’m like, oh my God, maybe I should stay in my house and not do anything, this is not looking so good. But the arm healed up, the tooth is fine and I’m cancer free. But it’s been a trying year to say the least.”
Martina, who refused to let her diagnosis affect her work schedule over Wimbledon fortnight this year, has also opened up about one of the devastating side-effects of cancer treatment.
“I couldn’t find a pair of jeans one morning and I started crying. I thought what the Hell is the matter with me?… I just didn’t want to get out of bed.
“And then I felt empathetic to people who have depression because now I know what they go through. Only I’m sure it’s much much worse because I did get out of bed, I did play tennis and I was working, but for me, I wasn’t myself. I was flat as a pancake (emotionally); I just didn’t care.”
As for Dancing With The Stars and according to WoKay.com, Martina is “adamant and determined to hit the show with vigor and conviction.” She still considers herself “young and enthusiastic” despite her hardships recently and she knows dancing won’t be easy. Below is more, but, be sure to read the link for the full story. I love what she says on age and having a passion for learning….
Previously she was seen on British reality show ‘I’m A Celebrity, Get Me out of Here’. Navratilova has told in an interview that she has started learning new techniques of the dancing skills which she would be using in the upcoming dancing show.
Many other tennis stars such as Martina Hingis, Monica Seles and Todd Woodbridge too have shown their dancing expertise on various British, American and Australian versions of this dancing show. On ABC, the new season will begin airing and the masses have fastened the belts to sail through the waves.
Well, Martina is considered to be the most senior participant on the show. She says that whether you are 55 or 85, the age doesn’t matter, you have to have passion for learning and that she has in plenty.
Martina tells the New York Post that dancing is on her bucket list. Below are some quotes for more of why she decided to dance and facing her fears….
“My strength is that I am an athlete, I am used to doing things over and over and (I have) body control.”
“This is a big fear for me to dance in front of other people,” Navratilova tells The Post. “But I always wanted to learn how to dance. I was just too shy to do it. So I figured just jump in with two feet.”
So, what do you think? Will Martina be a force to be reckoned with physically and mentally on the dance floor as she approached her tennis game? I think so and I can’t wait to see. 🙂
Picture courtesy of Hello Magazine.
Thanks Vogue! She wasn’t too much on my radar and you helped me take notice of her. Let’s hear it for strong women!!! I wonder if the women will have an uphill battle this year because the men are so attractive, and I don’t mean just physically. And I know Tony is very elegant and kind and has his fans but I think of the DWM crowd, he’d come out 3rd in their support and he can come off so blah. I need to be sure to give her a fair chance despite there being several who are more flashy and charismatic. Thanks!
YW, thanks and my sentiments exactly!
I was amazed and thrilled when I saw Martina step out on stage during the cast reveal. She’ll have work ethic in spades and I give her props for putting herself out of her comfort zone like this. Go Martina!!!
In many ways, I think Tony is an excellent choice of partner for her. However, I agree with jess that there’s some concern these two will get lost in the glare of flashier couples. Love Tony and his gentlemanly, kind personality, but that’s been both a strength and a weakness. His choreo doesn’t razzle-dazzle viewers or judges.
Aw Darnit! After reading this article now I am rooting for her this season as well… My list keeps growing.
LOL, mine too Sandy!! 😉
Cidra, I so hope Tony steps it up some from past seasons. My fave partner of his has been Audrina. However, this might change very soon?
Vogue, I thought I read somewhere that there is no elimination the first week. (Please correct me if I am wrong). I hope so, I always hated to have a 1st week elimination. Even if 2 go the next week, at least they all had an extra week to enjoy the ride.
If memory serves (not always the case with me. *LOL*) I think someone reported in the comments to something here at Pure that ABC had issued a release that said the first elimination show was on the 27th? So that’d be week 2.
Yep, Evaine is correct. ABC Media said the first elimination will take place in week two. I’m so glad for that.
Thanks, Vogue! I have always been a Martina fan, and I was thrilled when I heard she was in the cast this season! The second day that she was on her new Twitter account, I tweeted to her to wish her and Tony luck. She tweeted back to me within a few hours, thanking me and asking for my votes. She has always been a class act, and I really look forward to seeing her give it her all. She has the right attitude: Put in the time, do the work, and enjoy the results. I am a Maks fan, but I will also give Martina and Tony some votes this season. Martina’s first dance is a Foxtrot. Should be fun to watch! 🙂
Adding: we reported on the elimination as well as the first dances in this post here: https://www.puredwts.com/2012/02/28/dwts-season-14-a-foxtrot-or-a-cha-cha-cha-to-be-the-couples-first-dance/
YW NYCGirl. That is so cool she replied to you. She’s very gracious and humble I’ve noticed. I’ve also noticed a sense of peace in her now versus in her tennis competing days, do you?
Thanks Everyone. 🙂
First of all i’m enjoying reading everyones comments! 🙂 Vogue, as an athelete I appreciate this post very much. I’ve come to realize the mental is just as important as the physical and Martina certainly seems to have mastered that. Another big advantage her and Donald will have in this competition, if you ask me. Go Martina and Tony! 🙂
Mental or Physical won’t be her problem. Her problem will be her elegance. Will she be like Hope or will she be like Laila? Will have to see.
Please don’t compare classy Martina to Hope, Jennifer. Ever. Please. 😛
I”m not glad for that if it means a double elimination somewhere down the line.
I think Martina is a competitive person, so don’t count her out. If she puts as much work into dancing as she did tennis, she might surprise us.
#11 Yeah, Vogue, it’s very cool that Martina tweeted back to me! I was one of the lucky ones who tweeted to her before a gazillion people went on her Twitter page and started sending messages! 🙂 She said something on Twitter about how the paparazzi are being nicer to her now that she’s on DWTS. Then she added that she’s also nicer than she used to be. So, yeah — she’s matured and mellowed out a bit, as we all should at some point, IMO. Also, because she recently dealt with a very serious health problem, she is now more focused on enjoying herself. And let’s not forget that she’s always had a wicked sense of humor! Martina rocks!
Great reporting and great comments ahead of me – I agree with just about all of them, so won’t repeat.
I followed women’s tennis back in the day when Martina and Chris Evert were both competing. Their matches were fascinating – often very close and always fiercely fought on both sides, and yet they were very good friends.
I believe she is some kind of fitness spokesperson now for AARP (American Association of Retired Peeps for you youngun’s.)
#19 I also followed both Chrissie’s and Martina’s careers back in the day. They were the ultimate tennis rivals. Each one kept the other one from completing the “Grand Slam” of tennis. Their top world rankings see-sawed back and forth between #1 and #2 with one of them knocking the other one out of first place in turn. Their rivalry on the court really was epic. And part of the fascination was that they were two different people temperamentally. I wouldn’t mind seeing Chrissie on DWTS too! Like Voguerista said, the “mental” aspect of Martina’s dancing should be interesting to watch as well as the physical challenge.
# 20 NYC Girl – beautiful and true description description of the Chrissie-Martina rivalry. You have taken me right back to the drama and intensity of those matches – ahhhhh 🙂
#21 Thanks, Faby! This is a great thread! I actually got chills thinking about sitting on the edge of my seat watching Chrissie and Martina duke it out in the dozens of matches I watched them play in the ’80s. I’ve never seen two people more evenly matched, and yet so completely different in temperament and in style of play. They were the essence of yin and yang. Yes — drama and intensity. Well said!
If I were to compare Martina to a previous athlete on DWTS, I’d go with Evan. I get that same sense of intense focus, achieving success through hard-core training, and a desire to go for perfect technique. On a social level, they both come across as somewhat shy and a bit reserved but with an underlying sense of humor that comes out when they’re at ease and around people they’re comfortable with.
What Cidra said! I have high hopes for Martina. I’ve been following tennis for decades and she is a true icon, a pioneer. And because she seems to have a strong sense of self, and a healthy sense of humor, I think she will go far. In addition to a champion’s focus and drive, she gives her all in every endeavor. I once read that she is a truly natural athlete, could have excelled in any number of sports; has a natural instinct and awareness of her body, her muscles. Dare I say that Tony may, in the end, be her weak link? I think she will embrace the entire experience (with the exception of fake nails LOL), and that attitude will carry you far in this competition.
In past seasons (off the top of my head, without exception) I’ve had a strong feeling about who would go first. If not exactly who, which of 2 choices. Absolutely cannot say the same about this season. At all. Subjec to change, of course, after Vogue (we love you Vougue 🙂 ) posts the first rehearsal videos.
Have to agree with Maks (and yes, I’m one of those whose who can appreciate the virtues of our favorite bad boys) that this seems to be the most chill season ever.
The entire debate of did Sherri have ballroom lessons with Val prior to everyone else has only one really negative repercussion, IMO – that we loose someone like Martina too soon because a (perceived) lack of natural “connection” with Tony (due to her shy personality plus opening night jitters) will result in low scores and low votes. Fingers crossed that, like me, fans of this show are also huge fans of Martina.
#22 NYC Girl YES! I never saw them live, but on TV they were riveting.
#23 Cidra – ITA with your insight into the similarities between Martina and Evan.
I hope she’ll be able to overcome her shyness enough to tune her body to the music.
I’m loving all of your comments! Thanks everyone!!!!xx
I think I watched every match with Chris and Martina too. I respected them both so much (and Bjorn Borg too). They were my idols and I tried to use some of their tactics in my game. I loved Chrissie’s backhand. I loved how Bjorn and Martina could get into their deep zones mentally. Martina was so good in doubles too.
Zach, I agree. Martina is not in the same catagory as Hope.
I don’t know much about Martina, but this article inspires me to root for her. Thanks so much for posting it, Vogue! If she’s as great as she sounds, I hope she sticks around for a while.
No elimination the first week, and with 12 contestants instead of 11, interesting. I’m curious how far into the season the presumed double elimination will be.
Didn’t they in the season they had 16 couples eliminate one male and one female at the first results show? Maybe they will do that right off the bat this season?
#24 Linde – Agreed, Tony’s choreography tends to be simple, and he doesn’t like to “push” his partners. Who needs fake nails, anyway? LOL False eyelashes, hair extensions, and spray tan are way more important 😉
#25 Faby – Yes, that’s one concern I have. I hope she has some musicality to tap into. If she “feels” the music it will help her push past the shyness and “perform”.
#26 Vogue – Ah, Bjorn Borg – The Machine! You’re dead on about their “deep zone”. It was impressive to watch. Of course Martina can’t lock herself in that zone while dancing; she’ll have to find a focus point outside herself.
YW Adrian! 😉
Cidra, so true about her finding a focus point outside herself. And LOL to Martina drawing the line at fake nails. Hilarious!
And Jennifer, I was thinking about your comment about Martina not being able to be “elegant”. Tennis players are taught to be “light” on their feet (which is part of the “elegant” thing, right?). She was definitely light on her feet behind the base line, in the middle of the court, and at the net. I don’t think she will have a problem in that area?
Oh, and I wonder if we’ll see some tennis greats in the audience supporting her this season? I bet Chris will be there and possibly Billy Jean King. Can’t wait to see.
Great comments, everyone!
#25 Faby – Believe me, you could feel the electricity when Martina and Chrissie took the tennis court! They are both living legends, and you can’t say that about many people. Plus, as we’ve all been saying, Martina has an intense focus, and so did Chris. It was like they were sending out laser beams at each other on the court!
#26 & #30 Voguerista – I watched dozens of their matches live, and when they weren’t in town, I watched them on TV. I loved Martina, but I was an even bigger fan of Chrissie’s because my temperament is closer to hers than to Martina’s. I used to copy Chrissie’s on-court demeanor in my daily life– cool, methodical, calm … hahaha. When Chris would get mad at one of the lines people for a bad call, instead of ranting like Martina did, Chris would just stop cold, turn around, and stand there unmoving, staring down the lines person without an expression. The audience would go “oooooh”, and the announcer on TV would say, “Evert does NOT LIKE THAT CALL!” LOL! Martina was the exact opposite: a hothead, volatile, demonstrative, yelling, but really funny! Saying stuff out loud to herself in the middle of a match that would just have you rolling! Great stuff! 🙂
Vogue, I was saying to a friend of mine last season that I would love to see Chris Evert on DWTS. When they announced Martina for this season, the first thing I thought of was: Maybe Chrissie or Billie Jean will show up in the audience! Both of them are good friends with Martina. BJK was my all-time fave and I followed her career back in the day too!
Okay, sorry to go on, but this is a good discussion. Thanks, all!
LOL NYCGirl. So true about each of their personalities at the time. I was a fan more to Chris too. She and Bjorn both had that silent, intense way. They turned the bad calls inside out and just fought that much harder. I loved that and tried to do the same in my tennis game….and life as well when I felt something was unfair. It’s cool for what you learn personally from playing and/or watching sports. It helps you through out your life.
*sigh* Thanks all for this. Never did I expect we’d be talking about tennis like this. I so hoped a tennis player would do the show someday and now we have one. I hope Chris does the show as well. Id’ love to see a former male pro do the show too….Jimmy Conners, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, or Boris Becker anyone? 🙂
Oh wow, it would be terrific if Chris of Billie Jean would show up in the audience! Can’t wait.
Vogue (#30) – I agree Martina should be light on her feet, and that’s definitely part of being elegant. She might need to work a bit on extending through her fingertips and pointing her toes. Aren’t athletes normally taught to keep their joints just a tad flexed so they don’t hurt themselves? Of course that’ll work in her favor when she needs “flexed” knees for some of the dances. I still chuckle over Kurt and Anna (the beloved Bickersons) going on about flexed knees vs. bent knees. LOL
Oh dear, Vogue, not sure some of the “boys” you named would take the judges’ criticism very well. Johnny Mac might pull off one of his cuban heels and wing it at Len’s head. Come to think of it, that could be quite funny…
LOL! True!!!
I don’t think that Martina has the fanbase that Evan had – Evan was much more recently in the news. It will help her, but she and Tony will need to make a splash.
Andre Agassi was my main man in the tennis world. It would be great to see some more tennis pros take to the dance floor. Andre has great showmanship, and I always thought Martina had a great deal of charisma also. I wish her luck with this.
So true Heidi. I’d like to see both of them doing a lot of interviews in the next couple of weeks and to keep tweeting. Martina has been tweeting just right…but, Tony needs to step it up. Remember how he and Chynna didn’t hardly do any PR before the show last season? Bad move!
Alice, so true about Andre!! I can see him with Kym. I can see Boris with Karina.
Interesting comments regarding Tony’s choice of choreography. I would also venture to place Maks in the same category. I have always thought their choreography style was traditional, very “old school”. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it, but when you compare it to much more modern choreography (ex. Karina and JR’s freestyle or Julianne and Apolo’s) it doesn’t hold the same interest factor. Somehow I can’t see Tony and Martina performing either of those freestyles even if Martina was capable of doing it. Would love to know what y’all think!
“YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!” -John McEnroe in response to the judges’ scores. LOL
There are joint ATP/WTA events in Indian Wells and Miami this month. I would love to see who will come out to support Martina.
You’re right, Vogue, Tony and Martina need to get out there and work the press outlets – get people talking about them. Surely there would be interest in having a legend like Martina on any talk show. Their publicists need to start making phone calls.
LOL to John McEnroe’s response, May. Yeah, it woudn’t be pretty if he had to question a few of the judges calls. lollll
JennJenn, I think Martina is capable of anything given the right circumstances. So, I’d never say nothing was impossible with her.
Cidra, exactly.
Good thread, everyone! Re: Martina’s fanbase — I don’t know what this means, but I’ve noticed that Martina has been trending on Yahoo in their search results all week. So, there is a lot of interest in her at the moment. Of course, we don’t know who’s searching for her on Yahoo or why, but at least it’s creating some buzz around her appearance on DWTS. Hopefully that interest will translate into votes for her and Tony. Martina tweeted that she hears she’s the “underdog” to win the competition, and she’s not used to being the underdog, but she will be ready by the premiere. So, we can expect this great champion to rise to the occasion!
#32 – Voguerista – BTW, I learned A LOT from Chris Evert about keeping my cool in a negative situation. I still refer to it as the “Chris Evertness” that I learned from her. 🙂
“Chris Evertness” I love that!! 😉
Martina is one of Yahoo’s top 10 most searched right now so I guess shes trending. Never a bad thing. 🙂
I like Voguerista’s comment #38. PR is always very important! Keeps you on the radar. Otherwise, people will forget about you. I just wish Jaleel and Kym would tweet more about how rehearsals are going. Kym hardly ever tweet anyway. Lack of PR or connection with your fans isn’t good at all.
Nice piece. I didn’t know much about Martina other than I long admired her athleticism in one of my favorite sports and I’m liking her attitude and approach thus far on her dancing venture. Though I doubt her dancing prowess, I know she’ll give her best and hope she surprises!