Bollettieri made his name with the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, which he founded in Florida in 1978. The boarding school, later named IMG Academy, was the first of its kind and was followed worldwide in tennis and other sports.
In addition to NBTA students Agassi, Courier, Seles and Pierce, Bollettieri also worked with top students such as Venus and Serena Williams, Martina Hingis, Tommy Haas and Maria Sharapova during his career. Bollettieri was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2014.
“You have given so many children a place to work on their dream,” writes German Lisicki on Twitter, with a photo with Bollettieri. “You supported them with your knowledge and the belief that anything is possible. I was lucky enough to be one of them. You shaped tennis. You will be greatly missed.”
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