LONDON – A British auction of former tennis star Boris Becker's
personal memorabilia, including trophies and rackets, concluded on
Thursday after Becker had dropped legal action to prevent it.
The online auction by Wyles Hardy and Co was expected to raise more
than 500,000 pounds (630,000 dollars) for Becker's creditors, after
the three-time Wimbledon champion was declared bankrupt in 2017 for a
debt claimed by private bankers Arbuthnot Latham.
The 82 items were first offered for sale in June 2018 but the auction
was suspended after Becker, 51, challenged his bankruptcy status in
Britain and claimed diplomatic immunity as a sports attache for the
Central African Republic in the European Union.
The auction lots included a Puma tennis racket from around 1988, with
a cover signed by Becker, which drew a closing bid of 13,400 pounds
on Thursday.
A German Bambi golden deer "man of the year" trophy, awarded to
Becker in 1985, attracted a winning bid of 30,600 pounds.
A replica of the Wimbledon men's singles trophy, presented to him by
the German Tennis Federation after he won the title in 1985 and 1986,
was expected to sell for 32,100 pounds.
Wyles Hardy said earlier that Becker had agreed to cover the "damages
and costs" associated with the postponement of the sale.
Becker won six tennis grand slam tournaments during his career,
rising to become one of Germany's biggest sports stars of the 1980s
and 1990s, after winning his first Wimbledon title at just 17 years
old.
He is now a tennis commentator for the BBC and other media.