Slump Not Due to Any Eating Disorder, Says Eugenie Bouchard
Tipped for the very top when she reached the 2014 Wimbledon final, Eugenie Bouchard endured an alarming loss of form in 2015 and suffered a freak accident at the US Open.
Highlights
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Bouchard is a 22-year-old Canadian tennis player
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She was the 2014 Wimbledon women's singles finalist
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She has been undergoing a slump in form lately
Former Wimbledon runner-up Eugenie Bouchard's slide down the tennis rankings had nothing to do with any eating disorder, the Canadian said on Thursday.
The whole issue was down to a misunderstanding, she said.
Tipped for the very top when she reached the Wimbledon final in 2014, Bouchard endured an alarming loss of form in 2015, and suffered a freak accident at the U.S. Open when she slipped in a locker room and suffered a head injury.
A subsequent court case with the United States Tennis Association (USTA), and a change of coach and management company hardly helped her focus. Then the rumours began of an eating disorder.
"I never said I had an eating disorder -- I don't have one and never have," she said in an interview with broadcaster ESPN.
"That was something I was disappointed to see. I was describing how I would be nervous before matches and have trouble eating, which has happened to me since I was eight years old and playing tournaments.
"It definitely happened more frequently in 2015 but now I am less concerned about what people think.
"Now I worry about me and I can eat a lot."
Bouchard, down at 48th in the rankings after reaching number five in 2014, is still only 22-years-old.
After experiencing a career's worth of highs and lows in such a short period of time, she has now changed her approach.
"What I learned the most last year was to look out for myself and do what's best for me; not worry about what people think or say," she said.
"I was living with a lot of pressure and expectations.
"Now I've adopted a go-for-it attitude. Life is short and the career super short and I want to enjoy it. I took a step back and looked at the big picture: it's tennis, I love it -- it's a beautiful game -- so I want to enjoy it."
Bouchard has not enjoyed the best preparation for Wimbledon, however -- losing to lowly-ranked Belgian Elise Mertens in Den Bosch and winning only one match in Mallorca a week later.
At Eastbourne there were some encouraging signs although she was well beaten by Agnieszka Radwanska.
"I had results that I wasn't satisfied with, so coming into this week I really kind of kicked myself in the butt, told myself to go after it, not have any regrets," she said.
"I live an amazing life, so I just kind of want to make the most of it."