Tennis star Anne Keothavong broke down in tears in court as she defended her husband in a rape trial. Her birth sign is Virgo and her life path number is 1. After this, another wildcard allowed Keothavong entry into the main draw of the Wimbledon Championships where she faced Mariana Daz Oliva in the first round and lost in straight sets. In August and September, she reached four consecutive ITF finals, winning three. Andrew campaigns for better conditions and to stop the abuse of people living with ME. She added: He isn't an aggressive person, this has been so outrageous, he isn't an aggressive person. The injury was noted in medical reports as well as a bruise to her thigh, the jury was told. 'This case is not easy and cases of this type never are. But on cross-examination today, defense attorney Sarah Forshaw KC accused her of retold her version instead of answering a direct question and . Keothavong was selected for the British Fed Cup team to play in the Europe/Africa Group 1 match at Eilat, Israel on 14 February 2012. She also attempted to qualify for the Eastbourne International and was again beaten in the first round. Anne Keothavong is single. 233. The couple has been trying to shield their two children, aged five and seven, from the high-profile case, the court heard. She regrouped during a toilet break at the end of the first set and came back to win the match in three sets despite being 20 down in the deciding set. Keothavong also played in the doubles with Ayumi Morita against Julie Coin and Marie-ve Pelletier, trailing 46, 53 when she attempted to run down a drop shot and, in trying to avoid a collision with the net post, suffered a serious knee injury, rupturing her left anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus, a similar injury to the one she suffered in 2004 in her right knee. The woman, who cannot be named, told how she feared corporate lawyer Andrew Bretherton would 'suffocate' her in the bedroom of his 'small flat in a grand building' after he pushed her face into the pillow with his 'semi-professional tennis arm'. . Brian O'Neill KC, prosecuting, said the alleged victim had given a 'broadly consistent' account of the alleged attack. Elena Baltacha was her conqueror in the Hastings Direct whereas Jelena Jankovi was the victor over Keothavong in Wimbledon. [29] After Wimbledon, Keothavong made a successful start to her American hardcourt season by winning three matches to qualify for the Tier II event in Stanford. Jurors had previously heard Keothavong then won back-to-back ITF events. At the Cellular South Cup in Memphis, Keothavong reached the semifinals, on her return to the main tour. She has siblings named James, Mark and Lena. 'Her repeated refusal to give the police access to various material such as her therapist's records might be because she had something to hide as has been suggested to you by the defence or might be nothing more than a legitimate desire to protect her privacy and prevent strangers from looking through irrelevant personal material. 'Is it or may it be because she is anxious to secure a criminal conviction before pursuing a civil claim for damages, or can you be sure that this is simply a case of her finally being emboldened to come forward? Keothavong again represented her country in the Fed Cup in April and won one of her three singles matches. Jurors took less than an hour to unanimously acquit Andrew Bretherton, 49, of two counts of rape alleged to have taken place over 14 years ago in May 2008. She shouted at Mr Bretherton as she left that is not what you do, that is not what you do.. [16] Immediately after Wimbledon she headed to Felixstowe to participate in a $25k tournament where she reached the quarterfinals. She was beaten in the first round of qualifying by Stephanie Gehrlein. Keothavong announced her retirement on 24 July 2013. [60], Keothavong's greatest strength is her powerful forehand which she uses to try to dominate play from the baseline and she adds as much topspin as possible to increase the probability of the ball landing in court. She also reached the semifinals of six International tournaments on the main tour and the semifinals of one Premier tournament. [2] She then came up against reigning world No. 84.[15]. She announced her retirement on 24 July 2013. In June, she was given a wildcard into the qualifying draw of Birmingham where she lost in round one. Keothavong played her first match on the ITF Junior Circuit in February 1996, at age 12, and her last in August 2001. Keothavong then qualified again and this time reached the semifinals of the Luxembourg Open, defeating Ana Ivanovic in straight sets along the way before losing a close match to Monica Niculescu. During her career she won a total of 20 International Tennis Federation singles titles, 8 ITF doubles titles and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. Please check back soon for updates. Her year-end ranking for 2005 was world No. In singles, she won one title at the LTA Junior International Tournament Bisham Abbey where she beat compatriot Elena Baltacha in the final. It was on November 29 of this year (2016), another revelation happened to Anne as she was confirmed to be the new . [4], Anne Keothavong was born in Hackney in London, to parents who had fled from their wartorn home country of Laos in the 1970s. Tennis star Anne Keothavong broke down in tears in court as she defended her husband in a rape trial. Jurors took less than an hour to unanimously acquit Andrew Bretherton, 49, of two counts of rape alleged to have taken place more than 14 years ago in May 2008. Ms Keothavong, 39, said she thought it was a "sick joke" when Andrew Bretherton, 49, was accused of rape because it was so beyond the "fantastic father's" character, a court heard on Monday. A second consecutive wildcard gave her entry into the main draw of Wimbledon where she had to withdraw during her first-round match against Katarina Srebotnik with the score at 26, 04. She decided to make a break for it, unlocked the bathroom door, grabbed her jacket from the side of the bed, picked up her bag and ran for the door. Andrew Bretherton, husband of former tennis star Anne Keothavong, went on trial today accused of raping a woman in 2008 (WireImage) By Gwyn Wright, Sam Elliott-Gibbs . 702. Corporate lawyer Bretherton, who married Ms Keothavong in February 2015, denies two counts of rape. Nevertheless, in reaching the semifinals she became the first British woman to reach the semifinals of a WTA clay-court event since Jo Durie reached the semifinals of the 1983 French Open, 26 years before. Bretherton, 49, denies two counts of raping the woman in May 2008. Keothavong then headed to the main draw of the Australian Open for the first time in her career where she came up against Anna Chakvetadze, who was the 17th seed. 146.4K posts. She then defeated Sania Mirza in the first round before giving Marion Bartoli a tough time in round two in a match which she eventually lost in three tight sets. [2] Anne was British No. [36] Despite this crushing defeat, a semifinal run was enough to help Keothavong make the hop from world No. Registered in England No. Anne Keothavong has not been previously engaged. This was followed by another first-round defeat in a Premier event in the Italian Open, this one at the hands of Carla Surez Navarro. Like many celebrities and famous people, Anne . In August, Keothavong lost in the first round of qualifying for the US Open and followed this up with three consecutive first-round losses in WTA events. The alleged rape victim waited for 10-and-a-half years before naming Mr Bretherton to police. Andrew Bretherton, who qualified at the leading City law firm Slaughter and May, and married Anne Keothavong in 2015, denies the offence, allegedly committed in May 2008. Keothavong had little success during the US Open Series, but the majority of her successes for 2011 came during the European hardcourt series towards the end of the year. [34] She lost to Virginie Razzano in the second round. At the beginning of the year in Australia, Keothavong reached the second round of the Auckland Open losing to Kateryna Bondarenko, and the second round of the Australian Open, where she qualified, losing to 30th seed Andrea Petkovic in three sets. She also has a sister, Lena. 175.[15]. She rarely has a match where she serves no aces at all, and in her second round match at the 2008 US Open she served a total of seven aces.[62][63][64][65][66][67]. He told jurors: 'Quite why she waited as long as she did until she made a formal complaint to the police is something to which you will wish to give careful consideration. [5][6] Her father, Somsak, encouraged her to play short tennis from an early age. [58], In October 2020 she was nominated to the board of the All England Club. The defendant said he has never owned a silver boombox and has never had a CD or tape that features that track. The most compatible signs with Virgo are generally considered to be Taurus, Cancer, Scorpio, and Capricorn. We have noticed that there is an issue with your subscription billing details. Keothavong shared a picture of her little one together with her husband to her followers on social media. Keothavong made a disappointing start to 2013, losing in the first round qualifier in the Australian Open to Grace Min. In the run up to Wimbledon, Keothavong lost in the first round of the Birmingham Classic to Kateryna Bondarenko and in the first round of the Rosmalen Open to Sara Errani. Fun Fact: On the day of Anne Keothavongs birth, "Maniac" by Michael Sembello was the number 1 song on The Billboard Hot 100 and Ronald Reagan (Republican) was the U.S. President. In April, she reached the semifinals of the $25k event in Patras and competed for Great Britain in the Fed Cup where she won one of her three singles rubbers. She then returned to the ITF Circuit playing $25k tournaments and won one more title, in Perov. Anne Viensouk Keothavong MBE (born 16 September 1983) is a British former tennis player. An American woman who says she was raped by the husband of former British tennis number one Anne Keothavong was accused of 'making a mountain out of a molehill', a court heard today.The alleged victim claims that corporate lawyer Andrew Bretherton pinned her face down on his bed and suffocated her until she feared she She did not play again that year and finished with a ranking of world No. 1. They were the kids of the 1990s who were born roughly between 1980 and 2000. 69, Rita Grande, but was beaten. Interviewed by police 11 years after the alleged attack, Bretherton said: "It would have been consensual. Former British tennis star Anne Keothavong sobbed in court yesterday as she called the rape allegations against her husband a "sick joke". 1 and in 2009 became the first British player to make the WTA top 50 since 1993. He has spoken for various ME organisations in Australia and in the UK including Millions Missing . She competed in three more $25k tournaments that year and reached the semifinals in two of them. Andrew Bretherton, 49, pinned the woman face down on to his bed so she felt she was being 'suffocated' before forcing himself inside her without her consent, jurors were told. The court was told that he met the complainant in the summer of 2007, and then again at a drinks party the following year, the Daily Mail reported. She battled past Ivana Lisjak in three sets before only dropping two games in a drubbing of Daniilidou. Her father, Somsak, encouraged her to play short tennis from a young age. 268. Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, SE1 9GF. 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She won the first in Bath beating Hannah Collin in the final. After Wimbledon, Keothavong reached two consecutive finals of $50k events in Lexington and Vancouver, facing Stphanie Dubois in the finals of both and winning once. In February, she reached the semifinals in Sutton, London ($25k) as a qualifier. You held your head high and answered all the questions. ", The alleged victim then left the flat and Bretherton said: "We didn't really speak after that.". UPDATE: Andrew Bretherton was acquitted unanimously by the jury on December 14, 2022. The husband of Britain's former tennis number one Anne Keothavong yesterday denied raping a woman saying: "It was 100 percent consensual." Corporate lawyer Andrew Bretherton told a jury: "I was . Recent photographs of the flat showed there is currently no lock on the bathroom door, the jury was told. At Wimbledon, Keothavong defeated fellow Brit Naomi Broady in the first round before losing in the second round to No. She beat Eva Martincov in round one of qualifying before losing to Yuka Yoshida. George Odling Crime Correspondent For The Daily Mail
The November 2017 piece on the Deadline Hollywood showbiz site said 300,000 could be paid out to a woman who had sued Weinstein. Lets find out! 49, has been cleared of rape after the tennis star broke down in court and branded a US woman's sex attack claims 'a sick joke'. I wish you and all your family the very best for the future.. According to our records, she has no children. 1, Dinara Safina, in the first round of the French Open and endured the dreaded "double bagel" when she was defeated, 06, 06. In February she reached two consecutive ITF semifinals in Tipton ($25k) and St. Paul ($50k) before going on to lose in qualifying for the Cellular South Cup and in qualifying for Indian Wells in March. Tennis star Anne Keothavong's husband is cleared of rape. She faced Janet Lee in round one and lost. Ms Keothavong described her husband as a "fantastic person" who she "loves even more" as the rape case . An American woman has told how she was left bleeding after she was brutally raped by the husband of a former British number one tennis star. In June, she was given wildcards into the qualifying draws for the Birmingham Classic (where she was beaten in the first round of qualifying) and the Eastbourne International (where she reached the second round of qualifying) and the main draw of Wimbledon. His alleged victim wrestled free then locked herself in the bathroom before running from his west London home following the alleged attack in May 2008, Inner London Crown Court heard. She finished the year without a world ranking. Keothavong came up against world No. Keothavong did not compete again until mid-June when she was given a wildcard into the main draw of the Hastings Direct International where she was defeated by Japanese veteran, Ai Sugiyama. Keothavong married Andrew Bretherton on 28 February 2015. An ex-girlfriend, who Bretherton was with for two-and-a-half to three years from 1998 told the court she never expected her former partner to be facing such allegations calling him the perfect man to bring to her parents.. Lost (46, 57) at 2007 $25k Surbiton Trophy. [51], Keothavong lost in straight sets to Melinda Czink in the first round of the French Open. Show more. This meant that although they lost ties against Serbia and Montenegro and Slovenia, they avoided a place in the relegation play-offs for another year. As of 2023, Anne Keothavong is possibly single. Keothavong played her first event of the 2012 season at the Auckland Open where she was the top-seed in the qualifying tournament. She also has a sister, Lena. Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. 5 seed, Elena Dementieva, proved too much for Keothavong in the third round; Keothavong lost. [52], In Wimbledon, Keothavong lost her second-round match against Sara Errani, 16, 16. In junior doubles, she won one tournament, the 13th Salik Open, and lost in the final of two others: the LTA International Junior Tournament Bisham Abbey and the 11th Malaysian International Junior Championships. Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, SE1 9GF. All three of these were in 1999 and all three were partnering Elena Baltacha. Andrew Bretherton, husband of UK tennis star Anne Keothavong has been cleared of rape at Inner London Crown Court. In April 2001, aged 17, she became, until Katie Swan in 2016, the youngest player ever to play in the Fed Cup for the British team, and she is second (alongside Elena Baltacha) to Virginia Wade's record for most Fed Cup ties played for the Great Britain with 39. Forum Staff View All RIPwtaworld Super Moderator. Keothavong recovered well from her injury and returned to action ahead of schedule in March at the $10k tournament in Sunderland where she suffered a three-set first-round defeat by Verdiana Verardi. Kim flaunts her taut tummy as she arrives in New York for the big fashion event - with her daughter in tow, It's Kim City! She is not dating anyone currently. But on cross-examination today, defense attorney Sarah Forshaw KC accused her of retold her version instead of answering a direct question and . Anne Keothavong is single. Former partners of Bretherton described him as a boring lover and a respectful gentleman who was not particularly interested in sex. The former tennis champion and her husband hugged and kissed outside the courtroom after the case finished. In the other four events, she either lost in the first round or qualifying stages. She made it to the semifinals after taking out Shapatava, Kristina Antoniychuk and Valrie Ttreault, in straight sets. Anne Keothavong was born on 16 September, 1983 in Hackney, London, is a British tennis player. [20] In May, she reached the semifinals of a $25k event in Monzn where she lost to Angelique Kerber. His wife broke down in tears in court as she described her husband as a 'fantastic person' who has 'never been remotely aggressive' when she gave character evidence on Monday. 'If you are sure she has told you the truth it would be your duty to convict.'. 894646. But it later emerged she had never mentioned that when she visited a rape crisis centre within a week of the alleged attack. Anne Keothavong's husband Andrew Bretherton, 49, has been cleared of rape after the tennis star broke down in court and branded a US woman's sex attack claims 'a sick joke'. Anne had at least 1 relationship in the past. The alleged rape victim waited for 10-and-a-half years before naming Mr Bretherton to police. Jurors had previously heard In Sunderland, her fourth consecutive final of August and September, she won by again beating Hannah Collin.