Amelie Mauresmo

ISSY-LES-MOULINEAUX, France — Two-time Grand Slam champion Amelie Mauresmo retired from tennis Thursday, saying she no longer had a burning desire for competition.
The 30-year-old Frenchwoman is a former No. 1 player who finished this season at No. 21.
"I don't want to train anymore," Mauresmo said after shedding tears about the decision. "I had to make a decision, which became evident in the last few months and weeks. When you grew older, it's more difficult to stay at the top."
Mauresmo, who won both of her Grand Slam titles in 2006, at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, said she was happy to leave on a good note after winning her 25th singles title — her first in almost two years — in Paris this season. She also had seven wins over Top 10 players in her final year.
"It's a bit sad, but this is the right decision," Mauresmo said. "I was lucky enough to have an exceptional career and to experience very strong feelings on the court."
Mauresmo, who was the No. 1 in 2004, played her last match in the second round of this year's U.S. Open, losing to Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada 6-4, 6-0. She pulled out of her last two tournaments of the year.
"It became very hard in buildup to the U.S. Open," Mauresmo said. "If I were able to enter the court, play and shine, of course I could continue, but to achieve this you need to put in such hard work. And I'm not capable of that."
Mauresmo said she has no regrets and feels proud when she looks back at a career that started in 1993.
"I dreamt of this career, I dreamt of winning a Grand Slam title," she said. "I lifted trophies in every city in the world and I lived 10 magical and unbelievable years."

PARIS, Dec 3 AFP - Two-time Grand Slam winner Amelie Mauresmo of France announced on Thursday she is retiring at the age of 30 following a decision made ``after careful consideration.''
Geneva-based Mauresmo, a former world No.1 who currently stands
21 in the rankings, won Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006 during a stellar career which saw her land 25 singles titles as well as $US15 million ($A16.21 million) in prizemoney.
``I've come here to announce the end of my career. I made this decision after careful consideration,'' an emotional Mauresmo told a news conference at Issy on the outskirts of Paris.
Mauresmo came to prominence at Grand Slam level with a run to the 1999 Australian Open and she reached the semis at the US Open that same year.
Her Wimbledon title success came after three losing semi-final showings.
In 2004 she won Olympic silver.
But she suffered disappointments on home clay at Roland-Garros, where she could only manage two runs to the quarter-finals.
In 2005 she won the Masters end of season event.
Mauresmo's last appeared on court was on September 2 when she lost in the second round of the US Open against 39th-ranked Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak in straight sets.
She announced the following month she would not play again this season citing a slump in her motivation to keep competing at the top level.
Her final title came appropriately enough at the Partis Open earlier this year when she defeated Elena Dementieva.

PARIS, Dec 2 AFP - Former Australian Open winner Amelie Mauresmo is expected to announce whether or not she will continue her tennis career at a scheduled press conference on Thursday.
Mauresmo announced in October she was skipping her final two tournaments of the season, and rumours have swirled since that she is considering hanging up her racquet for good.
The Frenchwoman got off to a good start early in the season, winning the Paris Indoor Open, but struggled to maintain her form.
The former world No.1, and two-time grand slam winner, was dumped out of the second round of the US Open by Canada's Aleksandra Wozniak in her last match.
She is currently ranked 21st in the WTA rankings.

Amelie Mauresmo, suffering from an abdominal injury, has decided to pull out of Linz and Luxembourg where she was an acceptance for her last two tournaments of the 2009 season.

Amid growing speculation regarding retirement, MoMo blogged on her official website; "Since I came back from the U.S. Open, I've been trying to practice but I can't find the desire to start competing again. I don't want to rush things I will take some to think before making a decision regarding the remainder of my career."

French lady Amelie Mauresmo in another WTA player who will not make the trip to Japan, she has cited stomach pains as the reason for her pulling out of the event just days prior to the commencement.