[訪問]Fabiola Zuluaga 01/27/2004
Fabiola Zuluaga
Tuesday, 27 January, 2004
An interview with:FABIOLA ZULUAGA
Q. How does it feel to be a Grand Slam semifinalist?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Well, it feels good, but I didn't want it to be for the
first time like this way, you know. I prefer to play.
But I just have some luck today. Hopefully, I will get there in another Grand
Slam by myself and playing and winning matches.
Q. When were you first aware that Amelie had a problem?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: I knew when she finish her match against Alicia she had some
back problems. She was supposed to warm up after my warm-up, and she didn't
practice at all, she just warm up and she couldn't hit a ball. So I knew at
that time.
Q. Were you expecting her not to play? Were you going into this match
thinking perhaps you might not play today?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: I heard about it, but I was prepared for playing. You never
know. You hear many things. I was just concentrate on the match for today. I
was prepared to play at 11 o'clock, but then this happens. I was prepared for
both of them.
Q. Is it a good thing that you've got now so much more time before your next
match, or is it too much time, do you think?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: No, it's okay. Two weeks tournament, it's good when you have
some rest. But, as I said before, I prefer to play matches. This just happen
and I just enjoy being in my first semifinal.
Q. So you went through your normal routine this morning?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, I did. I warm up at 9:15. I'm all dressed. I'm still
dressed for the match, so I was prepared for it.
Q. Do you feel that when you come to a Grand Slam quarterfinal against a girl
that she's never beaten before and she pulls out at the last minute with an
injury, is there a part of you that things are falling in place for you here
at this tournament?
THE MODERATOR: Can you repeat that.
Q. I'm asking whether or not when you get to a quarterfinal in a Grand Slam
and you come up against a player like Mauresmo and she pulls out, whether or
not you feel like things are starting to fall your way, that someone's
looking after you.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Is been luck. I mean, I was lucky today that she didn't
play, of course. She's a great player, she's tough to beat. I can beat her.
As well she has beaten me many times in the whole career.
But it was just luck for me today. As I said before, I wish I could play the
match and win it, but you never know. These things happen. It was my turn,
so...
Q. What are you going to do with the rest of the day?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: I have a court at 12 o'clock and I'm gonna practice a little
bit.
Q. You've had quite a long period away from your game with injury, haven't you?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, I had 2001, like I was the whole year off. 10 months
out of the tour. But now, everything is okay. Not many injuries now, so it's
good.
Q. You had to play a lot of small tournaments to get back to this level?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: I play like four tournaments at the end of that year, and
then I play my first WTA tournament and I won it. So my ranking move up a
little bit faster. I start playing some Tier V and IV WTA tournaments so I
move a little bit quick.
Q. How well-known are you back home?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: A little bit.
Q. Famous or...?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: It's okay. Normal. Some people say hi to me in the streets
and they stop for autograph. But we have Montoya now, the Formula 1 driver,
he's the most famous sportsman in Colombia. We have soccer players that are
very famous. We have baseball players. Maybe it's me now, so (smiling)...
There is a good thing for us, for tennis in Colombia. Maybe we get some more
sponsors and more attention of the press and of this. So it's gonna be pretty
good for us.
Q. One time you played with the president?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: With the president, I played with two of them. Not the one
is now. But they're really good with me.
Q. How are they?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: They're nice people. They're just...
Q. Were they hackers, did they get the ball over the net?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Pastrana, the one before Uribe, the one that is now, he
plays good. But I play doubles with him and I'm the one that has to run all
around the court. But he serves good and we have fun, so that's good.
Q. Who do you like best to play against, Justine or Lindsay?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Both are tough players but maybe I prefer to play Justine
just because she's No. 1 in the world. You always want to beat the best one.
And because of her game, maybe she hits more with topspin and it's easy for
me to get in the rhythm of the game. Maybe Davenport plays a little bit flat,
more, you know, faster.
Q. Did you grow up playing tennis or start early or...?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, I start playing when I was seven in Cucuta.
Q. How do you spell that?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: C-u-c-u-t-a. That's at the frontier with Venezuela. It's a
small town, 800,000 people. It's not that big.
Then I move to Bogota. I went to Bollettieri's.
Q. You were with them for a while?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, I was with them for almost three years.
Q. I think you won the Bogota tournament three times. Have you received much
well wishes and support from back home?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, there are many Colombians here, like around 60 or 70.
They scream a lot during the matches. There has been great support for me
here, you know. We're far away from home, and just here with my coach now,
my sponsor just got here. So it's good that I have many people around.
Q. Have you heard from back home as well, people sending you messages?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Oh, yeah, they're getting crazy now, and they're so happy.
They been calling many times and they've been sending me e-mails, everything.
They're getting crazy.
Q. Is it the first time a Colombian male or female, is that right?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah. Is the first time. Even get into the quarters. They
were getting crazy there with that result, so imagine now (laughing).
Q. Has the current president promised you anything, a special present or
anything if you win the tournament?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Nothing. I never talk to him. I don't know him. I just know
him from the TV. My parents met him once when he wasn't president yet. So I
don't know him. I want to met him. He's pretty famous at home, so...
Q. What's his name?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Alvaro Uribe.
Q. And Alberto is his first name?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Alvaro.
Q. Alvaro. Sorry to be so ignorant about your country.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: That's all right.
Q. I guess Molina is the last Colombian that made a name.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Mauricio Hadad as well.
Q. Who is your sponsor?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Colsatinas. It's prepaid medicine company.
Q. Could you spell that?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: C-o-l-s-a-t-i-n-a-s. They have hospitals, clinics,
pharmacies. You know, you pay something during the monthly and then...
THE MODERATOR: Private insurance company.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah.
Q. Medical insurance.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yep.
Q. The fact that you are the first Colombian, does that put more pressure on
you or is it motivation?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: It's motivation. I feel really happy. I just want to keep
going and going and going and doing good things for my country, you know. We
not in a good way at home, so all of the things are really good for us. We
enjoying it. We having fun with this. We forgetting all the bad things we
have, like almost every day.
So it is good. I feel good being one of those Colombians doing good things
for us. So just help me to go farther and farther.
Q. Do you remember that night in Miami, seemed like there were about 12,000
Colombians at Key Biscayne?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, when I played Venus, yeah. That was crazy.
Q. Was that the most people you've played for?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, maybe.
Q. Until the next match here, anyway?
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah.
Q. That was a great night.
FABIOLA ZULUAGA: Yeah, it was good.
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