Diede De Groot Bio
Diede De Groot is a Dutch professional wheelchair tennis player recognized as one of the most decorated athletes in the sport’s history. She rose to world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, compiling a 42-time major championship record built on 23 singles titles and 19 doubles titles. Beyond her major results, De Groot captured multiple gold medals at the Paralympic Games and earned the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability.
Her career has been defined by historic streaks, including a three-year, 145-match singles winning run, and by milestones such as the first calendar-year Super Slam in tennis history. She also became the first player in any tennis discipline to defend a Grand Slam by winning all four major titles in two consecutive years, a feat she repeated in 2023.
Early Life and Background
Diede De Groot was born on 19 December 1996 in Woerden, Netherlands. She was born with unequal leg length, a condition that shaped her introduction to wheelchair sports at a young age. De Groot began her wheelchair tennis career at age seven, learning the sport through local clubs and the Dutch wheelchair tennis community.
Her early training laid the foundation for a long career in international competition. She developed her game on the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Tour, where she joined as a junior player in 2009. That same year marked the start of her professional pathway in the sport, and it set the stage for a rapid rise through the junior and senior ranks.
Path to Professional Tennis
De Groot broke through on the junior stage by winning the Cruyff Foundation Junior Masters in 2013 in both singles and doubles. The following year, she added the 2014 Junior Masters doubles title, confirming her status as one of the most promising young players in wheelchair tennis. These results helped her transition from junior events to senior international competition.
Her first major senior appearance came at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, where she reached the podium with a silver medal in women’s doubles. That same period included appearances for the Netherlands at the BNP Paribas World Team Cup, where she competed from 2011 to 2019, beginning as a junior in 2011 before becoming a full team competitor in 2012. The team events sharpened her competitive rhythm and prepared her for the Grand Slam stage.
Diede De Groot Career
Early Career (2009–2016)
De Groot’s earliest senior years were spent building experience on the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Tour, where she collected junior titles and learned the demands of professional competition. Her doubles success with partners such as Lucy Shuker and Marjolein Buis brought her first significant titles on the circuit, including doubles wins at the Wheelchair Doubles Masters in 2016 and 2017.
Her medal-winning performance at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio confirmed her arrival on the senior stage, even as she continued to refine her game for the major tournaments. These formative years established a rhythm of steady improvement that prepared her for her Grand Slam breakthrough.
Grand Slam Breakthrough (2017–2019)
De Groot made her first Grand Slam appearance at the 2017 Australian Open, reaching the quarterfinals before going on to win her first major title at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships. She closed 2017 with a finals finish at the US Open, signaling her readiness to compete for the biggest titles in the sport.
The 2018 season brought further success, including the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and her first US Open singles title. In 2019, she completed the career Grand Slam by winning her first French Open singles title, becoming the first wheelchair tennis player to achieve a non-calendar year Grand Slam. In doubles, she partnered with Aniek van Koot to win the 2019 Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon, completing a doubles Grand Slam that year.
Historic Dominance (2021–2023)
In 2021, De Groot produced one of the most remarkable seasons in tennis history, winning singles titles at the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open, the singles gold medal at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, and the Wheelchair Tennis Masters. This calendar-year Super Slam made her the first professional wheelchair tennis player to achieve the feat.
She defended her Grand Slam titles in 2022 and again in 2023, becoming the first player in any discipline of tennis to win all four major titles in two consecutive years. Her winning streak in singles stretched to 145 matches before it ended in May 2024. She also added the 2023 European Para Championships singles title in Rotterdam, defeating Aniek van Koot in the final.
Continued Excellence (2024–Present)
De Groot opened 2024 by winning her sixth Australian Open singles title, defeating Yui Kamiji in straight sets. That victory equaled the all-time singles major record set by fellow Dutch player Esther Vergeer. At the 2024 French Open, she became the first player ever to achieve the quintuple career Grand Slam in singles.
At the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, she added two more silver medals, finishing as runner-up in both women’s singles and doubles. Despite those results, her 2024 season was recognized with the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability, underscoring the scale of her achievements across the year.
Notable Events and Milestones
De Groot’s signature moments include her 2021 calendar-year Super Slam, her 145-match singles winning streak, and her historic run of consecutive Grand Slam titles from 2021 through 2023. She also became the first woman in wheelchair tennis to win both the singles and doubles titles at Wimbledon in the same year, doing so in 2018. Her completion of the doubles Grand Slam in 2019 with Aniek van Koot added another landmark to her career.
Diede De Groot Career Wins
Across singles and doubles, De Groot has accumulated 42 major titles, a total that places her at the top of the wheelchair tennis record book. Her singles haul of 23 major titles and her doubles haul of 19 titles reflect sustained excellence across all four Grand Slam events, the Paralympics, and the Wheelchair Tennis Masters.
Grand Slam Highlights
De Groot’s Grand Slam résumé includes six Australian Open singles titles (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), five French Open singles titles (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), six Wimbledon singles titles (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), and six US Open singles titles (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023). Her first Grand Slam title came at Wimbledon in 2017, and her most recent major singles title at the time of the 2024 Australian Open was her sixth title at Melbourne Park.
Other Wins and Performances
De Groot has also excelled at the Wheelchair Tennis Masters, winning the women’s singles title in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. She contributed to eight Dutch wins at the BNP Paribas World Team Cup between 2011 and 2019 and captured the 2023 European Para Championships singles title in Rotterdam.
Diede De Groot Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
De Groot was born and raised in Woerden, Netherlands, where she began her wheelchair tennis journey at age seven. Her early introduction to the sport was supported by the Dutch wheelchair tennis community, which helped nurture her development as a junior player on the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Tour.
2025 Season Performance
De Groot entered 2025 holding the No. 1 ranking in wheelchair tennis and coming off another major title at the 2024 French Open. Her early-season focus is expected to center on the Grand Slam events, where she has built a record-setting run of consecutive major titles. With her 145-match winning streak behind her, she now competes with a renewed focus on adding to her totals in singles and doubles.
Her partnership with Aniek van Koot in doubles remains one of the most successful pairings in the sport, and the duo will look to extend their record at the major events. The Paralympic cycle leading toward the next Games also shapes her season priorities, with Paris silver medals serving as motivation for the years ahead. Her legacy as one of the greatest wheelchair tennis players in history is already secure, and 2025 offers another stage to add to that record.