Yannick Noah (; born 18 May 1960) is a French former professional tennis player and singer, who was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005. Noah won the French Open in singles in 1983 and in doubles in 1984, and is a former captain of both France's Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup teams. During his nearly two-decade career, Noah captured 23 singles titles and 16 doubles titles, reaching a career-high singles ranking of world No. 3 in July 1986 and attaining the world No. 1 doubles ranking the following month. Since his retirement from the game, Noah has remained in the public eye as a popular music performer and as the co-founder, with his mother, of a charity organization for underprivileged children. He is commemorated each year at Roland-Garros with Yannick Noah's Day. Noah is also the father of former NBA player Joakim Noah.
Early life Born in Sedan, in the north of France in 1960, Yannick Noah is biracial. His late father was Cameroonian footballer, Zacharie Noah, and his mother, Marie-Claire, was French. After a sports injury in 1963, Noah's father returned to Africa with his family. Yannick was living in Cameroon when he made his debut in tennis and was discovered at age 11 by Arthur Ashe. He soon showed an amazing talent that brought him to the French Tennis Federation's training center in Nice in 1971.
Tennis career Noah turned professional in 1977 and won his first pro title on the Italian Spring Satellite in 1977 and his first top-level singles title in 1978 in Manila beating Peter Feigl in the final. He became France's most prominent tennis hero in 1983, becoming the first Frenchman in 37 years to win the French Open. He dropped only one set during the two-week-long tournament, and defeated the defending champion, Sweden's Mats Wilander, in straight sets in the final. Noah "boldly attacked the net and forced Wilander out of his baseline game". He remains the most recent Frenchman to have won the French Open men's singles title.
Noah won the French Open men's doubles title in 1984 (with compatriot and best friend Henri Leconte). He was also the men's doubles runner-up at the 1985 U.S. Open (with Leconte), and the 1987 French Open (with compatriot Guy Forget). In August 1986, Noah attained the world no. 1 doubles ranking, which he would hold for a total of 19 weeks. At the end of 1986, Noah received the ATP Sportsmanship Award, as voted for by other ATP players. He reached the quarter-final stage or better on 10 occasions at Grand Slam level. He notably admitted using marijuana prior to matches in 1981, saying that amphetamines were the real problem in tennis as they were performance-enhancing drugs.
In 1992, Noah received the Legion of Honour medal. Noah was awarded the Philippe Chatrier Award (the ITF's highest accolade) in 2005 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame that same year. He remains France's highest male ranked player since the introduction of rankings in 1973. Noah played on France's Davis Cup team for eleven years, with an overall win–loss record of 39–22 (26–15 in singles, and in 13–7 doubles). In 1982, he was part of the French team which reached the Davis Cup final, where they were defeated 4–1 by the United States.
Davis Cup/Fed Cup captain success In 1991, Noah captained the French team to its first Davis Cup victory in 59 years, defeating a heavily favoured US team 3–1 in the final. This feat was repeated in 1996, when Noah coached the French team to defeat Sweden 3–2 in the final held in Malmö. In 2017, Noah added a third Davis Cup win for France under his guidance as captain, defeating Belgium in the final in Lille. In 1997, he also captained France's Fed Cup team to its first ever win of that competition when they defeated the Dutch in the final.
Grand Slam singles performance timeline
Tournament19771978197919801981198219831984198519861987198819891990SRW–LWin %Australian OpenA/A1RA1RAAAAANHQF4R1RSF0 / 611–664.71French Open1R3R2R4RQFQFWQF4R4RQF4R1R3R1 / 1440–1375.47WimbledonA2R3RA1RAAA3RA2RAA1R0 / 66–650.00US OpenA1R4R4R4R4RQFAQF3RA2RQF2R0 / 1128–1171.79Win–loss0–13–46–36–37–37–211–14–19–35–28–37–34–38–41 / 3785–3670.25 Year-end ranking 305 49 26 18 13 10 5 9 7 4 8 12 16 40
Grand Slam finals
Singles: 1 (1–0) ResultYearChampionshipSurfaceOpponentScoreWin 1983 French Open Clay Mats Wilander 6–2, 7–5, 7–6(7–3)
Doubles: 3 (1–2) ResultYearChampionshipSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreWin 1984French OpenClay Henri Leconte Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd6–4, 2–6, 3–6, 6–3, 6–2Loss 1985 US OpenHard Henri Leconte Ken Flach Robert Seguso7–6(7–5), 6–7(1–7), 6–7(6–8), 0–6Loss 1987 French OpenClay Guy Forget Anders Järryd Robert Seguso7–6(7–5), 7–6(7–2), 3–6, 4–6, 2–6
Career finals
Singles: 36 (23 titles / 13 runners-up)
ResultW–L DateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScoreLoss 0–1 Apr 1978 Nice, France Clay José Higueras 3–6, 4–6, 4–6Win 1–1 Nov 1978 Manila, Philippines Clay Peter Feigl 7–6, 6–0Win 2–1 Dec 1978 Calcutta, India Clay Pascal Portes 6–3, 6–2Win 3–1 Mar 1979 Nancy, France Hard (i) Jean-Louis Haillet 6–2, 5–7, 6–1, 7–5Win 4–1 Sep 1979 Madrid, Spain Clay Manuel Orantes 6–3, 6–7, 6–3, 6–2Win 5–1 Oct 1979 Bordeaux, France Clay Harold Solomon 6–0, 6–7, 6–1, 1–6, 6–4Loss 5–2 May 1980Rome, Italy Clay Guillermo Vilas 0–6, 4–6, 4–6Win 6–2 Feb 1981 Richmond WCT, U.S. Carpet Ivan Lendl 6–1, 3–1 ret.Win 7–2 Apr 1981 Nice, France Clay Mario Martinez 6–4, 6–2Loss 7–3 Jul 1981 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Wojciech Fibak 1–6, 6–7Win 8–3 Feb 1982La Quinta, U.S. Hard Ivan Lendl 3–6, 6–2, 7–5Loss 8–4 Apr 1982 Nice, France Clay Balázs Taróczy 2–6, 6–3, 11–13Win 9–4 Aug 1982 South Orange, U.S. Clay Raúl Ramírez 6–3, 7–6(7–2)Win 10–4 Oct 1982 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Mats Wilander 6–4, 6–2, 6–3Win 11–4 Dec 1982 Toulouse, France Hard (i) Tomáš Šmíd 6–3, 6–2Loss 11–5 Apr 1983 Lisbon, Portugal Clay Mats Wilander 6–2, 6–7(2–7), 4–6Win 12–5 May 1983 Madrid, Spain Clay Henrik Sundström 3–6, 6–0, 6–2, 6–4Win 13–5 May 1983Hamburg, West Germany Clay José Higueras 3–6, 7–5, 6–2, 6–0Win 14–5 Jun 1983French Open, Paris Clay Mats Wilander 6–2, 7–5, 7–6(7–3)Loss 14–6 Feb 1984La Quinta, U.S. Hard Jimmy Connors 2–6, 7–6(9–7), 3–6Loss 14–7 Feb 1985 Memphis, U.S. Carpet Stefan Edberg 1–6, 0–6Win 15–7 May 1985Rome, Italy Clay Miloslav Mečíř 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, 7–6(7–4)Win 16–7 Jul 1985 Washington, D.C., U.S. Clay Martín Jaite 6–4, 6–3Win 17–7 Oct 1985 Toulouse, France Hard (i) Tomáš Šmíd 6–4, 6–4Loss 17–8 Oct 1985 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Stefan Edberg 7–6(9–7), 4–6, 6–7(5–7), 1–6Loss 17–9 Mar 1986La Quinta, U.S. Hard Joakim Nyström 1–6, 3–6, 2–6Loss 17–10 Apr 1986Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Joakim Nyström 3–6, 2–6Win 18–10 May 1986 Forest Hills, U.S. Clay Guillermo Vilas 7–6(7–3), 6–0Loss 18–11 Oct 1986 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Stefan Edberg 6–7(5–7), 2–6, 7–6(9–7), 6–7(5–7)Win 19–11 Nov 1986 Wembley, England Carpet Jonas Svensson 6–2, 6–3, 6–7(12–14), 4–6, 7–5Win 20–11 Feb 1987 Lyon, France Carpet Joakim Nyström 6–4, 7–5Loss 20–12 May 1987 Forest Hills, U.S. Clay Andrés Gómez 4–6, 6–7(5–7), 6–7(1–7)Win 21–12 Oct 1987 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Ronald Agénor 7–6(8–6), 6–4, 6–4Win 22–12 Feb 1988 Milan, Italy Carpet Jimmy Connors 4–4, ret.Loss 22–13 Mar 1989Indian Wells, U.S. Hard Miloslav Mečíř 6–3, 6–2, 1–6, 2–6, 3–6Win 23–13 Jan 1990 Sydney Outdoor, Australia Hard Carl-Uwe Steeb 5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Doubles: 25 (16 titles / 9 runners-up)
ResultW–L DateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreLoss 0–1 Dec 1978 Calcutta, India Clay Gilles Moretton Sashi Menon Sherwood Stewart 6–7, 4–6Win 1–1 Apr 1981 Nice, France Clay Pascal Portes Chris Lewis Pavel Složil 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Win 2–1 Nov 1981 Paris, France Hard (i) Ilie Năstase Andrew Jarrett Jonathan Smith 6–4, 6–4Win 3–1 Apr 1982 Nice, France Clay Henri Leconte Paul McNamee Balázs Taróczy 5–7, 6–4, 6–3Win 4–1 Oct 1982 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Henri Leconte Fritz Buehning Pavel Složil 6–2, 6–2Loss 4–2 Dec 1982 Toulouse, France Hard (i) Jean-Louis Haillet Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd 4–6, 4–6Loss 4–3 Apr 1983 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Henri Leconte Heinz Günthardt Balázs Taróczy 2–6, 4–6Loss 4–4 Jan 1984 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet Henri Leconte Peter Fleming John McEnroe 2–6, 3–6Win 5–4 Jun 1984French Open, Paris Clay Henri Leconte Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd 6–4, 2–6, 3–6, 6–3, 6–2Win 6–4 Apr 1985 Chicago, U.S. Carpet Johan Kriek Ken Flach Robert Seguso 3–6, 4–6, 7–5, 6–1, 6–4Loss 6–5 Sep 1985U.S. Open, New York Hard Henri Leconte Ken Flach Robert Seguso 7–6, 6–7, 6–7, 0–6Loss 6–6 Mar 1986 La Quinta, U.S. Hard Sherwood Stewart Guy Forget Peter Fleming 4–6, 3–6Win 7–6 Apr 1986 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Guy Forget Joakim Nyström Mats Wilander 6–4, 3–6, 6–4Win 8–6 May 1986 Rome, Italy Clay Guy Forget Mark Edmondson Sherwood Stewart 7–6, 6–2Win 9–6 Oct 1986 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Guy Forget Jan Gunnarsson Tomáš Šmíd 7–6, 6–4Loss 9–7 Dec 1986Masters Doubles, London Carpet Guy Forget Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd 3–6, 6–7, 3–6Win 10–7 Feb 1987 Lyon, France Carpet Guy Forget Kelly Jones David Pate 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Win 11–7 Feb 1987 Indian Wells, U.S. Hard Guy Forget Boris Becker Eric Jelen 6–4, 7–6Win 12–7 May 1987 Forest Hills, U.S. Clay Guy Forget Gary Donnelly Peter Fleming 4–6, 6–4, 6–1Win 13–7 May 1987 Rome, Italy Clay Guy Forget Miloslav Mečíř Tomáš Šmíd 6–2, 6–7, 6–3Loss 13–8 Jun 1987French Open, Paris Clay Guy Forget Anders Järryd Robert Seguso 7–6, 7–6, 3–6, 4–6, 2–6Win 14–8 Jun 1987 London/Queen's Club, England Grass Guy Forget Rick Leach Tim Pawsat 6–4, 6–4Win 15–8 Mar 1988 Orlando, U.S. Hard Guy Forget Sherwood Stewart Kim Warwick 6–4, 6–4Win 16–8 Apr 1990 Nice, France Clay Alberto Mancini Marcelo Filippini Horst Skoff 6–4, 7–6Loss 16–9 Sep 1990 Bordeaux, France Clay Mansour Bahrami Tomás Carbonell Libor Pimek 3–6, 7–6, 2–6
Music career
After retiring from playing tennis, Noah developed a career as a popular singer, performing throughout Europe. He began his music career in 1991 with the album Black & What, featuring the popular track "Saga Africa", which he made the stadium sing with his players after the famous Davis Cup final win. In 1993, he released the album Urban Tribu with the single "Get on Back", followed by the album Zam Zam in 1998.
With the encouragement of his manager Jean-Pierre Weiller, his musical career got a great boost in 2000 with his self-titled 4th album Yannick Noah, written by Erick Benzi and Robert Goldman. The single "Simon Papa Tara" was written by Robert Goldman. The album also contained songs by Bob Marley and the group Téléphone. In 2005, Noah performed at Bob Geldof's Live 8 concert, a fundraiser aimed at alleviating poverty in Africa. On 21 July 2009, Noah made his U.S. live debut, headlining a concert in front of a packed house at the popular free outdoor performing arts festival in New York City, Central Park SummerStage. The performance was part of France's global music celebration Fête de la Musique. In 2010, Yannick made a comeback with the release of Frontières, his eighth album, containing the single "Angela", a tribute to Angela Davis. It also contained a duet with Aṣa in "Hello". On 25 September 2010, he filled the Stade de France for an exceptional concert that was attended by close to 80,000 spectators.
Charity Noah is active in charity work. He supports Enfants de la Terre, a charity created and run by his mother, Marie-Claire, in 1988. Noah also founded Fête le Mur in 1996, a tennis charity and adaptation for underprivileged children, especially in the poor areas and the banlieues. It is presided by Noah himself. He is also a spokesman for Appel des Enfants pour l'Environnement that was started by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
He took part in singing with Les Enfoirés to help Les Restos du Cœur. He also took part in telethons and sponsored the Téléthon 2005. He also sponsors the Association Terre-des-Hommes in Massongex (Suisse) and donated proceeds of his 2008 concert of Grands Gamins, to Sol En Si, an AIDS charity.