Tennis Moods Style: Tatiana Golovin

Rated as the next big thing since early childhood, Tatiana Golovin rose to fame at the 2004 Roland Garros, when the 16 years old made sensation by winning the mixed doubles title alongside compatriot Richard Gasquet. Professionally speaking, her on-court achievements were not a perfect reflection of her immense talent. Brought up at the Nick Bollettieri’s Academy, she was always predicted a great future. She reached her pick in 2006-2007, when she finally won some tournaments and started challenging the better ranked players. Just when she was building her way up to the top of the ladder, her career was ended, leaving her to rue the ‘what ifs’.

Moi, Tatiana

Born in Moscow, Tatiana embraced the newly acquired lifestyle fully, becoming the ambassador of French apparel Lacoste. Little by little, she emerged as one of the few fashionista on the tour, developing a sexy, flirty, vivid style. It was obvious from the beginning that the company made the young hope, their leading star. Although the brand cannot compete on equal terms with the likes of Nike and Adidas, they did a great job in building a unique image for Tatiana making her easily stand out from the crowd. In a way, Tatiana adopted a similar style to Anna Kournikova. In their attempt to support such an image, Golovin’s wardrobe featured an impressive array of short tops and sexy hot pants. Although they were both endorsed as the sexiest athletes ever, the Frenchwoman ended up with a Lolita like image, perfectly capturing the French playful naughtiness.
For me, Lacoste is all about bright, intense colours and qualitative fabrics. Their pieces are not bold or over-the-top, the cuts are simple, unicoloured and seldom feature any prints or patterns. Also, their repertoire is rather limited at times, as you get the impression of having seen the same dress a few seasons ago. However, they do a great job at balancing the outfit, letting the colours do the talking, thus making creating a sharp, edgy esthetic. For Lacoste, the novelty lies in the colour combination.
Although a string of persistent injuries abruptly terminated her career, Tatiana continues to turn heads and inspire people with her fashion choices wherever she goes. So far, no clear decision has been taken about the future of her professional career. Nonetheless, even though she’s currently enjoying to the fullest leading the life of the rich and famous, I look forward to the day when she decides to make a comeback.

Roland Garros 2004

Wimbledon 2004

US Open 2004

Charleston 2005

Roland Garros 2005

Birmingham 2004

US Open 2005

Roland Garros 2006

US Open 2006

Melbourne 2007

Miami 2007

Charleston 2007

Wimbledon 2007

US Open 2007

Stuttgart 2007

Hopman Cup 2008

Melbourne 2008

photos (top-down / left-right):  ? (x2), GETTY IMAGES, ? (x3), AP, Wire Images, AP, GETTY IMAGES, ? (x5), AP, ?, AP, ? (x2, GETTY IMAGES (x2), ? (x5), GETTY IMAGES, ? (x2), GETTY IMAGES (x4), ? (x6), GETTY IMAGES (x3)