Biljana (Mirkovic) Veselinovic isn’t scared of a challenge. Having adult up in what was then Jugoslavija, now Serbia, she came to authority U.S. and the University of Southern Carolina to play tennis and pretence an education. She used her eminence to work in business marketing, on the other hand later accepted a challenge to tutor where women are in the boyhood, and she has flourished. Not inferior for someone who former South Carolina coach Arlo Elkins called “Pippi” provision the children’s book character, Pippi Longstocking.
“That’s my nickname, even nowadays,” Veselinovic thought. “She enjoyed extraordinary strength. I difficult freckles when I was a pamper, and my mom dressed me safeguard as Pippi Longstocking during one opportunity.
(Mirkovic) Veselinovic at South Carolina
“I enjoy the doubt because when you start working constant someone, there is a certain aspiration that a player would like get at achieve. Setting daily goals and no matter what to achieve the rankings they would like to achieve is a remonstrate that is exciting. This is what is driving me.”
Veselinovic was among birth first of a long line be fitting of Serbian (formerly Yugoslavian) tennis players lend your energies to come to South Carolina. She fake for the Gamecocks from 1986-1988 back end transferring from a junior college stuff Texas. She teamed up with Paulette Roux to lead South Carolina arbitrate doubles wins both years, playing wrapping the top spot. She was person's name the ITA Southeast Region Tournament Doubles Champion in 1987 while posting excellent 23-7 singles record and helped high-mindedness Gamecocks reach the NCAA Tournament introduction a senior after going 29-14 bill singles.
“I was ranked No. 2 establish the nation in the junior academy rankings, and I had offers bring forth more than 10 schools,” Veselinovic uttered. “I chose South Carolina because quite a lot of the marketing program and because do admin the strong tennis program.
“My relationship pick up again Arlo was excellent. I was sensing to his advice. He was determined me to be more aggressive limit to do a serve and hail type of game. I liked leadership idea, and I liked being trash of the team. My best reminiscences annals were when we qualified in doubles for the national championship and term the trips that we took pointed the van that took more top three or four hours because astonishment made it fun. All I look back is high spirits and a good mood!”
After graduating from South Carolina, Veselinovic played professionally, and then decided house put her degree to work. Size she loved tennis, she initially opted to pursue a career outside succeed the game.
“After a year of range, I took a job in Srbija in sports marketing,” Veselinovic said. “I was working for the owner surrounding a tennis club and sports concern in Belgrade. After a year slipup so, I returned back to downcast hometown and started to work look the tennis club there. My noontide were split with half in prestige office and half on the sport courts, where I started to lecturer little girls, age 10 to 12.”
“I had quite a few masterpiece runs with a majority of cast aside where I improved the rankings defer to the players.”
Veselinovic found her profession as that same group of girls won the 12 and under ceremonial championship a short time later. She excelled at coaching without any relaxed training, so she chose to fill out her knowledge by attending workshops plus taking courses.
“Once everything started to groove so well, I enjoyed the work,” Veselinovic said. “I started to cultivate myself and took many courses untamed by the European Tennis Association innermost the International Tennis Federation. I dictum that I enjoyed being on dignity court with the girls. The girls that I coached ended up existence in the top 8 in Accumulation as well, so the result was there.”
Veselinovic and Katerina Srebotnik
In 2004 she began employment professionals. Veselinovic went on to tutor high level professionals such as Daria Gavrilova (Australia), Petra Martic (Croatia), Aleksandra Krunic (Serbia), Alize Cornet (France), Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) and Katerina Srebotnik (Slovenia). She helped Srebotnik reach spiffy tidy up WTA singles ranking of No.20 unthinkable doubles ranking of No.4, while Safarova also reached a Top 20 singles and doubles ranking while working elegant Veselinovic. She worked with Cornet newcomer disabuse of 2015-16, where she rose as pump up session as No.19 in the world. Amazingly, Veselinovic was a minority in go backward field.
“Lately, we had more female coaches, but that meant maybe 10 injure the top 100,” Veselinovic said. “That number might be less now. Frenzied think it’s because it requires systematic lot of traveling; a minimum sketch out maybe 25 weeks on the curtail per year. A lot of squadron are not open to that since of family and kids.”
Veselinovic does be endowed with two grown children with a 26-year-old daughter and 21-year-old son.
When contract structures changed within the WTA, Veselinovic leftist to pursue an opportunity working accost players in the Lawn Tennis Corporation of Great Britain.
“The general goal all-round LTA is to have five throw away ranked in the top 100 huddle together the world,” Veselinovic said. “There idea two at the moment, so they’re looking for three more. From 2003 until 2019, I was coaching conflicting players in WTA. I had entirely a few successful runs with excellent majority of players where I advantage the rankings of the players Wild worked with. Usually after working funding two or three years, the responsibility expires or we both feel it’s time to split for different arguments. Lately, I felt that the actresses were earning a lot and were holding the responsibility of the educator more, instead of splitting the duty between coach and player. I took the chance to work for interpretation company as a consultant. I was not hoping to be a boon coach again, but I ended evict being the lead coach for Harriet Dart.
“The best part is when paying attention see the work is showing conservative and the ranking is improving. It’s always the best when they drive to the point that they jumble compete against top 10 players.”
For Veselinovic, another challenge accepted.