Iga Swiatek ended her search for a new coach, hiring an experienced name on the WTA Tour, Wim Fissette.
The Polish player only recently parted ways with her long-time coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski. The two enjoyed plenty of success together, but Swiatek felt it was time to try something new, and in her announcement of their split, she stated that she was looking for a coach outside of Poland.
It seems like she found a perfect fit, and that's Wim Fissette, who worked with almost every player who enjoyed some success on the WTA Tour. As a Belgian coach, it was natural that he started with fellow compatriot Kim Clijsters back in 2009, when he was still only 29.
The two split in 2011, and Fissette was without a coaching arrangement for a couple of years before joining forces with Sabine Lisicki in 2013. After a relatively short period with the German player, he coached Simona Halep in 2014.
In 2015, Fissette started coaching Victoria Azarenka, but he coached her only until 2016, when he, incredibly, coached six different players. After Azarenka announced her pregnancy, the Belgian coach worked with Petra Kvitova, Sara Errani, and Johanna Konta.
He worked with Konta until 2017 when he started working with Angelique Kerber. Fissette stayed with the German player until 2018 when he returned to Azarenka's team following her comeback after pregnancy.
He stayed with the Belarusian player until 2020 before joining Naomi Osaka's team. He had plenty of success with the Japanese player, but she, too, left the sport because of pregnancy.
In 2022, the Belgian coach started working with Qinwen Zheng, but that was only until a bitter split. Last year, Fissette left Zheng to join Osaka's team again, and the Chinese player wasn't taking it lightly.
However, his stay on Osaka's team didn't last long, as the two recently split. Luckily for the 44-year-old coach, Swiatek was on the lookout for a new coach, and she chose him, as she announced in a social media post.
"So, I have news for you today as I'm excited and motivated to start a new chapter. I'm happy to announce that Wim Fissette is joining our team."
Despite Fissette's history of multiple very few coaching stints and basically never staying with a player for as long as Swiatek worked with Wiktorowski, the Polish player stated that this was a long-term move for her tennis career.
She also disclosed that the two have already started preparing for the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh, which will be held from November 2nd to 9th. The Pole will be the defending champion at the event.
"As you know, I'm preparing for the WTA Finals but my perspective is, as always, long-term, not short-term. I said many times that my career is a marathon for me, not a sprint and I'm working, operating and making decisions with this approach."
Swiatek had only good words to say about Fissette. She was happy about his vision and experience, as the Belgian coach has worked with many players.
"I want to say that I'm very excited and looking forward to working with Wim. He seems to have a great attitude, vision and huge experience at a very top level of tennis. It's always crucial to try and get to know each other better but we're off to a good start and I can't wait to compete soon."
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