Pete Sampras could soon find himself holding replica trophies of his pair of Davis Cup titles after the International Tennis Federation offered to replace the honors that were stolen in a Los Angeles burglary last month.
The former No. 1-ranked player lost the majority of a career’s worth of memories after a break-in at a public storage unit where he had stashed dozens of boxes stuffed with various memorabilia.
The Los Angeles Times reported that while the 39-year-old still has 13 of his 14 Grand Slam trophies, “everything else” is gone. The ITF said that if the property is not recovered, it will make sure the American gets copies of his 1992 and 1995 Davis Cup trophies.
“We were sorry to learn of the theft,” said ITF head Francesco Ricci Bitti.
“We know how special a Davis Cup victory is for a player. If he is unable to recover the loss of his two Davis Cup trophies, we would like to offer him a replica trophy in recognition of his outstanding record in the event.”
Sampras said the boxes were uninsured as there was no way to calculate their value for commercial purposes. The property had been stored in recent years due to various changes of home for Sampras, his wife and two sons.
Sampras said he is missing his first Australian Open trophy from 1994, plus honors from five season-ending ATP events, 11 Masters Series titles, an Olympic ring and six awards for finishing No. 1 at the end of a season.
Source : Kentucky.com
