Morariu Brings Healthy Perspective To Her Comeback
by Christopher Gerby
In May 2001, Corina Morariu was one of the bright lights of American
tennis. A winner of 12 WTA doubles titles, once ranked as high as # 1 in
that discipline and # 29 in singles, her place in the sport seemed
completely secure. However, just a week after playing a clay court event in
Europe, Morariu found that security shattered. She was
diagnosed with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia, a rare and life-threatening
form of cancer. A staggering display of support followed from fans and
fellow players, with Jennifer Capriati even dedicating the 2001 French
Open title to her stricken compatriot. With the disease now in
remission, Morariu is preparing to rejoin her peers, playing World
Team Tennis for the Philadelphia Freedoms.
In the early days of her battle against leukemia, Morariu's focus was
not on tennis, but on merely staying alive. "I was as critical as
you could possibly be...pretty close to dying, actually." When her
fourth and final hospital stay ended the day after Thanksgiving, Corina was
in no shape to play any sport, having lost a significant amount of
weight and all of her muscle tone. Unable to even walk more than 20
yards at first, she made progress one step at a time, "gradually
trying to get my body back into shape." After deciding
that a professional tennis comeback was "something I wanted to try," she began
to step up her training in April. Morariu hired a new coach (Philip
Farmer) and has been splitting time between his base in Texas and her
home in Florida, gearing up for the World Team Tennis season.
A member of the league champion Sacramento Capitals in 1998, Morariu
is no stranger to Team Tennis. "It's the perfect setting for me to start to get some matches in,"
she says of the low-stress WTT scene. "I'm really looking
forward to seeing everybody and getting out there. I've always loved
playing on a team, having that support. The crowds are great."
Following her campaign with the Freedoms, Morariu is planning to play
doubles in San Diego and squeeze in a few singles matches before the
US Open. While the schedule may sound ambitious, her expectations are
realistic. "I'm not under any delusion that it's gonna be really easy,"
the 24-year-old said of the comeback, which she assumes will try her
patience at times. "I've never been one to set specific goals... It's
more about the journey and what I've learned in the past year."
Not surprisingly, Morariu's brush with mortality gave her a new
point of view. Realizing that tennis results are "so unimportant
in the grand scheme of things," she now devotes much of her time to
charity work. Seeing the positive ways her body has
responded to the training has been the main joy of her comeback process
thus far. Morariu's health has improved to such an extent that "a good day
a year ago would be the worst day I could imagine now." She even
finds herself waking up in the morning and thinking "Wow, this is
what it feels like to feel good." It's a feeling she had forgotten and
may never take for granted again. Since there is a low percentage chance of the
disease returning, Corina Morariu has already scored a victory more
significant than any she'll experience on a tennis court.
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The views expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect those of this magazine.
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Last updated 26 September 2015
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