Tennis · 1985 · London, England
The Youngest Wimbledon Champion
An unseeded 17-year-old from West Germany wins Wimbledon, and is still the youngest men's champion the tournament has had.
Becker def. Curren, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4
Result
17 years, 227 days (record)
Age
Unseeded (first unseeded champion)
Seeding
Boris Becker arrived at the 1985 Championships unseeded and largely unknown outside tennis circles, a powerfully built 17-year-old with a huge serve and a habit of throwing himself full-length at volleys that quickly became his trademark. He beat a string of higher-ranked opponents to reach the final against Kevin Curren.
Becker won it 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, serving in a way that Curren, himself a considerable server, could not read. It made him the youngest men's singles champion in Wimbledon history, the first unseeded champion, and the first German winner of the title.
He was a national hero in West Germany by the following morning, and the boom in the sport's popularity there ran through the next decade. He won Wimbledon twice more and reached world number one, and it is still the 17-year-old that people picture.
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