Gustavo Kuerten was the King of Paris, winning the French Open three times, with his final title in 2001 being one of the tournament's most unforgettable moments.
What happened to Brazilian tennis?
Brazil has struggled to produce players who can compete with the Americans, Australians, and Europeans, with no Brazilians in the first-round singles draw for the French Open.
Gustavo Kuerten's success was not built upon, with poor funding and organization being crucial factors, as well as a lack of courts, with only 212 public courts in a country of 210 million people.
Why is tennis not popular in Brazil?
Tennis is not seen as a sport for ordinary people, with former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva famously telling a poor child to forget being a tennis player because "it's a bourgeoisie sport".
Rafael Westrupp, president of the Brazilian Tennis Confederation, admitted that Brazil missed the chance to build on Gustavo Kuerten's fame, but pointed to the success of Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares in doubles as evidence they are moving in the right direction.
Gustavo Kuerten is playing his part to encourage a new generation, setting up a tennis school that teaches both tennis and beach tennis to kids and adults, with 48 centers in 30 cities.
What comes next for Brazilian tennis?
Gustavo Kuerten acknowledged that as a developing nation beset with problems, Brazil will always find it tough to produce players who can compete with the top nations, but is hopeful that his tennis school can make a difference.
The initiative, started in 2010, has coaches teaching more than 3,000 budding players, with Gustavo Kuerten saying "players who have been playing tennis for five years and are very good, who have parents who support them, and federations who support them, sometimes even they don’t have the answers".
Gustavo Kuerten won 11 ATP titles and reached a career-high ranking of world number one in 2000, but since his retirement in 2008, no Brazilian has come close to repeating his achievements.
The Brazilian Tennis Confederation estimates that there are around 10,000 tennis courts in Brazil, but only 212 of which are public, making it difficult for young players to access facilities.
Gustavo Kuerten's tennis school has created favorable conditions for a large number of high-performance tennis players to develop to the best of their abilities, with eight Brazilians in the ITF Top 100 Youth rankings.