[Peta Pan]

Ohh and I forgot to say.....

My two favourite men having an argument... how hot

[~*BGT*~]

I saw him at DC in USA vs France What a handsome man.

[kai.]

is the most cute umpire i ever see O.O

[jamjar]

I accidentally found this article about Enric, so I thought I'd post it here.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/stor...84B227D510C%7D
(there's a video of him and a pic on the site, too)

Q&A: Making the calls at Wimbledon
One of the world's top tennis umpires explains how he handles the pressure
By Aude Lagorce, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- As the Wimbledon tennis tournament nears its conclusion Sunday, MarketWatch talks to Enric Molina, one of the world's leading chair umpires, about staying at the top of his game.

This sounds like a dream job to many, how did you get there?
Tennis is sort of a family tradition. My father used play professionally and I played quite intensively until I was about 16, which is when you usually have to decide whether to give it a serious go or not. I decided to get a degree in advertising and worked for a couple of years in an agency. In parallel, from the age of about 14, I was calling lines at local tournaments. Then I applied for one of the schools that give you international certification and moved quickly up the ranks to obtain my gold badge in 2000.

What skills make a good umpire?
Obviously a good understanding of the game helps, even though not all umpires have played tennis. Communication skills are paramount, because you're often dealing with players when they're upset. So you have to remember that they're under intense pressure and adapt your communication to that. The ability to concentrate for long periods of time is also important. For me the worst feeling is when I'm in the chair and I'm feeling sleepy. So I try not to eat for a couple hours before a game. Lastly, experience, experience, experience. That's really what makes you a good umpire because you learn to handle the pressure. When I am stressed I try to block everything out and just focus on the ball.

What are the tools of the trade?
A five Swiss franc coin for the toss up, given to me by a friend and dating from the year I was born. It's got to be reasonably big so players can see it well. A stopwatch to take the time between the points and when players are resting, even though now we also have PDAs, and a tape measure to check the height of the net before the game.

What do you think of Hawkeye?
It's good because it puts extra pressure on us to be super vigilant at all times. And it's also helpful when there's a major disagreement because at the end of the day you want the right decision to be made. But some umpires felt a bit threatened when it was first introduced.

Is it tougher to chair a game on clay or grass?
It's very different. On clay you can look at the mark, but that also means you have to keep the mark in our head and often there are dozens of them. So you need to be sharp. On grass at the beginning of tournament you're helped by the fact that some chalk rises when a ball hits on the line. But later on there's dust everywhere, so you can't use that.

Do you ever develop relationships with players?
We try to keep it friendly but professional. Of course we run into each other often, after all we stay at the same hotels and eat at the same restaurants. So we meet often but we try to keep a distance. Any conflict of interest and you have to declare it.

How have you seen the game change in the 11 years since you chaired your first grand slam?
The game is faster because of the equipment, the rackets, the strings, the balls. The women's game has seen a big shift, mostly because of their physical condition and the training they undergo. Overall, the trend is for things to become more professional, partly because of the media attention. The facilities are better, for the players and the umpires as well as the public and the interaction with the players on court is more professional, as most young players have grown up playing with professional umpires.

What are the most memorable games you've chaired?
I remember my first semifinal at Wimbledon in 2002. It was Tim Henman (now retired British player known as Tiger Tim) against Lleyton Hewitt (ranked no. 1 at the time). That's a great memory.
For the quality of the tennis, I would say the Australian Open semifinal in 2005 between Marat Safin and Roger Federer.
And for the emotions Andre Agassi's last game at the U.S. Open when he retired.
Another memorable game was the longest in history, which I had the privilege to chair. It was a first round game at Paris' Roland Garros between Fabrice Santoro and Arnaud Clement and lasted six hours and 33 minutes.

[Carlita]

thanks for the article

He's in one of the Tennis A Fondo's too, will scan asap.

[jaybee]

I'm glad he kept his cool with arrogant Andy yesterday.

[Peta Pan]

Andy is a tool Made me so mad last night

There were some bad calls in the match - I guess there always are.. but the first one where Enric wouldn't let him replay the point after the challenge was ridiculous. Enric was completely correct and Andy wouldn't let it go.

I loved how Enric controlled himself
"Andy I don't think it is helping you or me to continue this conversation"

[biological]

Hello everyone - I've thought Enric was an awesome umpire for a while but then in the Fed-Roddick match I realised he's preeeetty damn hot as well Then I find this thread and see that I'm not alone

Thanks to all of you who have uploaded pictures to this thread, he's so cute

[jaybee]

Originally Posted by Peta Pan

Andy is a tool Made me so mad last night

There were some bad calls in the match - I guess there always are.. but the first one where Enric wouldn't let him replay the point after the challenge was ridiculous. Enric was completely correct and Andy wouldn't let it go.

I loved how Enric controlled himself
"Andy I don't think it is helping you or me to continue this conversation"

I agree. I got a little pissed at John Alexander for criticising Enric.

[Carlita]

oooh no messing with mister Molina!!!

French player Gilles Simon (L) argues a point with the umpire during the French Open tennis first round match against US player Wayne Odesnik on May 24, 2009 at Roland Garros stadium in Paris. The event, the second Grand Slam tournament of 2009, runs from May 24 to June 7, 2009. (Photo credit should read PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP/Getty Images)

[Peta Pan]

Originally Posted by ~*Carlita*~

oooh no messing with mister Molina!!!

French player Gilles Simon (L) argues a point with the umpire during the French Open tennis first round match against US player Wayne Odesnik on May 24, 2009 at Roland Garros stadium in Paris. The event, the second Grand Slam tournament of 2009, runs from May 24 to June 7, 2009. (Photo credit should read PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP/Getty Images)

Enric and Gilles

Poor Enric in his 2nd 5 setter of the day must have been fed up by this time

He had such an exhausting day umpiring 7 hours and 39 minutes of tennis

[Carlita]

With Rafael gone , this might be THE year Enric will get to do the Men's singles final (unless Tommy messes this one up )

[Peta Pan]

Originally Posted by Peta Pan

Andy is a tool Made me so mad last night

There were some bad calls in the match - I guess there always are.. but the first one where Enric wouldn't let him replay the point after the challenge was ridiculous. Enric was completely correct and Andy wouldn't let it go.

I loved how Enric controlled himself
"Andy I don't think it is helping you or me to continue this conversation"

I just quoted this post of mine from the AO because...... well is it really from the AO? or was it from yesterday

Andy being a prick to Enric once more I haven't seen it this time and I don't wish to. I just hate Roddick being a prick to umpires in general!!!

[Peta Pan]

Originally Posted by ~*Carlita*~

With Rafael gone , this might be THE year Enric will get to do the Men's singles final (unless Tommy messes this one up )

Well I thought that last year at the AO (Djokovic/Tsonga), but they gave that to Carlos... and then again in the US Open (Federer/Murray) I thought they might.. but he missed out again

ENRIC DESERVES A FINAL!!!!

[Carlita]

He does!! This year RG is Enric's FINAL!!!!!!!