The Most Famous
TENNIS PLAYERS from Denmark
This page contains a list of the greatest Danish Tennis Players. The pantheon dataset contains 1,569 Tennis Players, 4 of which were born in Denmark. This makes Denmark the birth place of the 45th most number of Tennis Players behind New Zealand, and Portugal.
Top 5
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Danish Tennis Players of all time. This list of famous Danish Tennis Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Kurt Nielsen (1930 - 2011)
With an HPI of 51.44, Kurt Nielsen is the most famous Danish Tennis Player. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.
Kurt Nielsen (19 November 1930 – 11 June 2011) was a Danish tennis player. He was born in Copenhagen, and was the first Danish tennis player ever to have played in a men's singles final in a Grand Slam tournament. Nielsen reached the singles finals of Wimbledon in 1953 (beating Ken Rosewall and Jaroslav Drobný, then losing to Vic Seixas) and 1955 (beating Rosewall, then losing to Tony Trabert). Both times he reached the final, he was unseeded. Before this, he won the boys' singles at Wimbledon in 1947 (defeating Sven Davidson). Besides his successes at Wimbledon, he won the boys' singles at the French Open and reached the quarterfinals in the U.S. Championships in 1953. With Althea Gibson, Nielsen won the U.S. Open mixed doubles in 1957, thereby becoming the first Dane to have won a Grand Slam event. During his long career, he won around 30 international titles, played 96 Davis Cup matches for Denmark (with a 53–43 record), and holds the record of having won the most Danish national tennis championships (50). Nielsen turned professional in 1960 and played on the pro circuit. After ending his active career, Nielsen held numerous honourable positions in leading international tennis associations as well as served as the supervisor and referee at many Grand Slam events. He was a commentator on the Danish version of the TV channel Eurosport until late 2006. Nielsen was the grandfather of Danish tennis player Frederik Løchte Nielsen. His grandson, at the 2012 Wimbledon men's doubles event, became the second Dane to win a Grand Slam tournament.
2. Caroline Wozniacki (b. 1990)
With an HPI of 47.42, Caroline Wozniacki is the 2nd most famous Danish Tennis Player. Her biography has been translated into 65 different languages.
Caroline Wozniacki (Danish: [kʰɑʁoˈliːnə vʌsniˈɑkʰi]; born 11 July 1990) is a Danish professional tennis player. She was ranked world No. 1 in singles for a total of 71 weeks, including at the end of 2010 and 2011. She achieved the top ranking for the first time on 11 October 2010, becoming the 20th player in the Open Era and the first Scandinavian to hold the top position. In 2018, she became the first Dane to win a major singles title, at the Australian Open. Known for her footwork and defensive abilities, Wozniacki won 30 WTA Tour singles titles (including six in both 2010 and 2011, the most in a year by a WTA player from 2008–2011) and two doubles titles. A junior major champion, she won the 2006 Wimbledon girls' singles title over Magdaléna Rybáriková and was voted the WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2008. Before her victory at the 2018 Australian Open over Simona Halep, she had reached two major finals at the US Open, falling to Kim Clijsters in 2009 and to Serena Williams in 2014. Wozniacki also won the season-ending WTA Finals in 2017, beating Venus Williams, after previously finishing runner-up to Clijsters at the event in 2010. Other career highlights include winning three Premier Mandatory and three Premier 5 titles, reaching four major semifinals (the 2011 Australian Open and the 2010, 2011 and 2016 US Opens), three major quarterfinals (the 2012 Australian Open and the 2010 and 2017 French Opens), and the quarterfinals at the 2012 London Olympics. Wozniacki retired on 24 January 2020, following a third-round loss at the Australian Open. In 2022, she became a commentator for Tennis Channel and ESPN before she announced in June 2023 a comeback at the Canadian Open and the US Open in August, targeting the 2024 Olympic Games.
3. Kenneth Carlsen (b. 1973)
With an HPI of 38.44, Kenneth Carlsen is the 3rd most famous Danish Tennis Player. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.
Kenneth Carlsen (born 17 April 1973) is a Danish former professional tennis player, who was active between 1992 and 2007. Carlsen played left-handed with a one-handed backhand. His greatest asset was his powerful serve, and his game was therefore best suited to fast surfaces (grass and hardcourt). For most of his long career, Carlsen was Denmark's best tennis player, and consistently among the few Danish players playing at the highest international level. He was awarded as best Danish "Tennis Player of the Year" seven times by the Danish Tennis Federation (first time in 1991, last time in 2005). Two times the award went to the Danish Davis Cup team, of which Kenneth Carlsen until 2003 was a central part (having a 29–13 record in singles).
4. Kristian Pless (b. 1981)
With an HPI of 33.43, Kristian Pless is the 4th most famous Danish Tennis Player. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Kristian Peter Pless (born 9 February 1981) is a former professional male tennis player from Denmark.
5. Frederik Nielsen (b. 1983)
With an HPI of 31.19, Frederik Nielsen is the 5th most famous Danish Tennis Player. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.
Frederik Løchte Nielsen (born 27 August 1983) is a former professional tennis player. He was the top ranked player from Denmark in the ATP doubles world rankings. A former Wimbledon men's doubles champion, he peaked at no. 17 in the rankings in April 2013. Nielsen has reached five other doubles finals on tour, winning on two occasions. Nielsen's parents were both tennis players and he picked up the sport at the age of three. Having turned professional in 2001, he began competing on the ITF circuit, winning a singles title every year between 2005 and 2010. He continued to play in ITF and ATP Challenger tournaments, garnering considerable success on the doubles circuit where he won multiple titles during the period. Nielsen made a transition on to the main ATP Tour beginning 2012. He represented Denmark at the Hopman Cup that year, playing a few keenly contested matches against top-ranked opponents including Tomas Berdych and Mardy Fish, while also winning in doubles with Caroline Wozniacki. Nielsen entered the 2012 Wimbledon Championships with Jonathan Marray as wildcard entrant, but the duo went on to win the tournament upstaging such higher-ranked opponents as the Bryan brothers en route to the title. He became only the second Danish player to ever win a Grand Slam title (following his grandfather Kurt) and the first wildcard entrant to win Wimbledon men's doubles title. Partnering Johan Brunström, Nielsen reached the finals of the 2012 Moselle Open and the 2013 Heineken Open, before winning his first tour-level title at the 2014 Aircel Chennai Open. He continued to play on the Challenger tour in singles, while enjoying success in doubles on the main ATP circuit, winning again at the 2019 BMW Open. Nielsen is the grandson of Kurt Nielsen. A former Danish tennis player and two-time Wimbledon finalist a US Open Mixed Doubles champion.
People
Pantheon has 5 people classified as Danish tennis players born between 1930 and 1990. Of these 5, 4 (80.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Danish tennis players include Caroline Wozniacki, Kenneth Carlsen, and Kristian Pless. The most famous deceased Danish tennis players include Kurt Nielsen. As of April 2024, 1 new Danish tennis players have been added to Pantheon including Kristian Pless.
Living Danish Tennis Players
Go to all Rankings
Caroline Wozniacki
1990 - Present
HPI: 47.42
Kenneth Carlsen
1973 - Present
HPI: 38.44
Kristian Pless
1981 - Present
HPI: 33.43
Frederik Nielsen
1983 - Present
HPI: 31.19
