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Jennifer Capriati named USOC 2001 SportsWoman of the Year
// By Carla O'Connell // usolympicteam.com Jan. 24, 2002
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Tennis player Jennifer Capriati, who won two Grand Slam events during 2001, was named the 2001 USOC SportsWoman of the Year in a vote of national media, the USOC Executive Committee, the USOC Board of Directors and the USOC Athletes' Advisory Council.
Capriati (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) won her first Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open, defeating Monica Seles, Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis in the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, respectively. She won the second leg of the Grand Slam by capturing the women's singles title at the French Open, becoming the first American woman to win the French title since Chris Evert in 1986. Capriati is one of only four women in tennis history to win the Australian Open and French Open in the same year. When Capriati advanced to #1 in the Sanex WTA Tour rankings, she became only the sixth American woman to hold the top spot since WTA Tour computer rankings began in 1975.
Joining Capriati at the top of the SportsWoman of the Year vote-getter list were Michelle Kwan (figure skating), Stacy Dragila (athletics), Natalie Coughlin (swimming) and Tiffeny Milbrett (soccer).
Cyclist Lance Armstrong and his U.S. Postal Service Team were voted the 2001 USOC SportsMan and Team of the Year, respectively.
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