10 Things You Didn’t Know about Diego Schwartzman

There are plenty of tennis players that have fascinating backstories, but few are quite as eventful as Diego Schwartzman’s. Not only did his family overcome the odds to survive almost a century ago, but Schwartzman himself has had to overcome physical disadvantages to take on some of the world’s top players. The Argentine native has had a great career both on and off the court, but you may not know his whole story. Here are 10 things that you didn’t know about Diego Schwartzman.

1. He’s Tied For Shortest Professional Male Tennis Player

Tennis players tend to skew tall compared to the average person, and even in the sports world, tennis players are taller than most athletes. It’s rare that you see someone below average height become a world-class tennis player, but Diego Schwartzman has broken the mold. Standing at just 5’7”, Schwartzman is tied for the shortest male professional player. The only other active professional at that height is Yoshihito Nishioka. The two players are still two inches taller than the shortest player Olivier Rochus, who retired in 2014. Being that short takes away some of the power you can get on hits, but the potential for agility is maximized, and Schwartzman has taken advantage of his stature.

2. His Family Escaped The Holocaust Through An Accident

Due to the atrocities in Europe during the World War II era, the Schwartzman bloodline almost ended well before Diego was born. That’s because his great grandfather in Poland was Jewish and was on a train en route to a concentration camp before the car carrying him broke off while the rest of the train carried on. Diego’s great grandfather was able to escape and quickly made his way to Argentina where Diego was born. As for his other side of the family, they had fled Russie and made their way to Argentina, as well, forming a family that result in Diego’s birth in 1992 and he has since become a favorite among Jewish sports fans.

3. He’s Made More Money From Winning Than A Tennis Legend

When we compare players from different eras, it’s not really fair as sports can change dramatically over a few decades. Still, it’s interesting to see how much more athletic the pros are these days across all sports and how much more money they’re making. Schwartzman has made more than $12.8 million from his winnings. In 2022, his career earnings placed him ahead of none other than John McEnroe as he vaulted into the top 60 of all time. Still, it would be hard to catch Novak Djokovic, who has made over $158 million in his career.

4. He’s a Mainstay of the Top 30

After sitting outside of the top 50 for many years, some of which he was outside of the top 100 in the world, Schwartzman finally found himself ranked in the top 30 for the first time in September 2017. Schwartzman hasn’t slid out of that position ever since, and he cracked the top 20 for the first time the following year. At his peak, Schwartzman has broken into the top 10 and was ranked as high as eighth in the world for one week in October 2020. As for his doubles career, Schwartzman is well outside of the top 100 and actually has a losing career record with a teammate.

5. He Tried Out Wheelchair Tennis

To get an appreciation for the disabled athletes that play tennis from a wheelchair, Schwartzman decided to try it out for himself while hitting with a Paralympics gold medalist. For Schwartzman, it was a real eye-opener to how much athleticism it took to be a Paralympian. “I don’t know how they do it,” Schwartzman said. “It’s very, very tough to move around the court…I think at the end, you understand how difficult it is to move and what they do, it’s very special.” The Paralympian that Schwartzman played with was Gustavo Fernandez, the former number one singles player in wheelchair tennis.

6. He’s Dating a Fashion Model

It seems that professional athletes and supermodels go hand in hand in terms of relationships, and Diego Schwartzman is no exception. For several years, Schwartzman has been dating fellow Argentine Eugenia De Martino. De Martino drew a lot of attention at Wimbledon in 2022 when she accompanied Schwartzman to the tournament, and as a result she has amassed over 150,000 followers on Instagram.

7. He’s Looking For His First Grand Slam Finals Appearance

One of the biggest goals that any professional tennis player has is to make it to the finals of a grand slam tournament. For Schwartzman, he’s still searching for that illustrious first appearance, but he’s had some good showings. While Wimbledon and the Australian Open haven’t been kind to Schwartzman, he has reached the quarterfinals twice at the U.S. Open. The closest Schwartzman got was in 2020 at the French Open, reaching the semifinals after upsetting Dominic Thiem, but lost in straight sets to the legendary Rafael Nadal.

8. He’s Named After a Soccer Icon

You can’t talk about Argentinian sports without mentioning soccer legend Diego Maradona. Schwartzman is one of many from the country to be named after Maradona, who passed away in late 2020. Schwartzman was devastated by the death of Maradona, saying that he loved the soccer star and was named after him. “He comes from Argentina, so wherever we go, everyone knows Argentina thanks to Maradona,” Schwartzman said.

9. His Junior Career Was Rather Lackluster

We mentioned in the introduction that Diego Schwartzman had to overcome a lot to make it onto the ATP Tour, and his junior career is no exception. At no point during his junior career did Schwartzman crack the top 200 in the junior rankings. His family even sold bracelets between matches to help fund his tennis aspirations. A bit of a late bloomer, Schwartzman would go on to win several Futures tournaments that helped him break into the professional ranks. His first taste of a Grand Slam tournament came at the 2014 French Open where he ran into the buzzsaw that is Roger Federer.

10. He Named His Dogs After Reggae Legends

Many people name their dogs after someone that means something to them, and for Schwartzman, he’s a big fan of music. Specifically, reggae music. With that, he named his two dogs Bob and Ziggy after the father-son Marleys that are the most well-known in the music genre. Schwartzman has featured his two pups prominently on social media, and the three of them even appeared on a magazine cover together.

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