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No. 3 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia would like to take the next giant step as a professional tennis player – winning a Grand Slam title.

The third ranked women´s tennis player could realize that dream at the Tennis US Open in Flushing Meadows, New York August 27 – September 9. A semifinals appearance at the 2006 US Open and 2007 French Open is the closest she has come to championship glory.
At nine years old, Jankovic was first exposed to the game of tennis at the tennis club “Red Star.” She was “coached” by Marko, her older brother, and soon, Jelena stood out from the competition after only a few practices.At that time in Belgrade, Jenna didn´t have access to the state-of-art training equipment and facilities.

In spite of the difficulties, she emerged as one of the best young players from Eastern Europe. She enjoyed early success as a junior, but this was only the beginning.

Her talent was recognized by top coach Nick Bolletieri and earned her membership into the famous Bolletieri tennis camp in Florida.

Her early experiences paid off, and Jelena eventually won the Australian Junior Open in 2001, followed by second place finishes at the US Junior Open and Orange Bowl that same year.

She became the top ranked junior tennis player and was ready for the next level. She entered a number of senior tournaments and became a full-time pro in 2002. She entered the season ranked 316 and ended it as 194^th in the world.

The following year, she entered the Australian Open and advanced to the second round.

Her continued success dramatically improved her world ranking, and she emerged as an eighth seeded player winning her first title in Budapest.

That same year, she was the sole representative of Serbia and Montenegro at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

In her career, Jankovic has won 176 matches and lost 112. So far this year, has won 62 matches and lost 16. She has earned a total of $2,983,238 in her career and $1,323,851 so far this year.

She currently resides in Brandenton, Florida.