2 weeks Ago By Yasmin Syed
The Tiriac Open, an ATP 250 tournament, wrapped up it's latest edition in Bucharest a fortnight, featuring players such as Roberto Bautista Agut and Sebastian Baez. The competition is named after Romanian tennis icon Ion Tiriac, who has become renowned for his business ventures. Despite only clinching one Grand Slam doubles title, the billionaire's wealth surpasses the combined net worth of Novak Djokovic , Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray .
Tiriac may not be a household name in sports, but he is among the wealthiest. Forbes reports that the 84 year old boasts a real-time net worth of an astounding £1.7 billion ($2.
1 billion), dwarfing the combined net worth of Djokovic, Murray and Raducanu, which stands at £284million. During his playing career, Tiriac earned approximately £150k, with his crowning achievement being the 1970 French Open doubles title, won alongside fellow Romanian Ilie Nastase. However, Tiriac found even greater success post-retirement, when he transitioned to other roles within the sport.
After retiring, Tiriac turned to coaching and managing other players, including Goran Ivanisevic and Marat Safin. Most notably, he mentored a young Boris Becker and served as his agent from 1984 to 1993. In addition to this, Tiriac owned and operated several tennis tournaments, although his portfolio has dwindled in recent years.
He managed the ATP Finals when they were held in Hanover and developed the Madrid Open, which he sold to IMG for around £334 million in 2021. The Tiriac Open in Bucharest made a comeback this year, being held for the first time since 2016. However, the majority of his wealth has been amassed through his business ventures.
Following the collapse of communism in Romania, he established the country's first private bank - the Tiriac Bank. In addition to banking, he owns businesses in retail, aviation, car dealership and insurance sectors. A passionate car collector, the 85-year-old boasts a collection of over 400 vehicles in the Tiriac Collection, including models previously owned by celebrities such as Sir Elton John and Al Capone.
Tiriac made history in 2007 when he became the first Romanian to be included in Forbes' list of billionaires, and he continues to be one of the wealthiest figures in sports..
