Marion Bartoli realizes childhood dream with Wimbledon 2013 title

Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli was a finalist at the All England Club in 2007 but lost to Venus Williams. Six years later, she’s once again in the final and will have another chance to reverse her fortunes – and she did.

The fifteenth-seed defeated Sabine Lisicki of Germany 6-1, 6-4 at the Wimbledon 2013 Ladies’ Singles Final on Saturday to finally realize her childhood dream of winning a Grand Slam title.

“Honestly I still can’t believe it,” Bartoli said during the on-court interview with BBC’s Sue Barker after match. “I’ve dreamed about this moment for so long. For me, winning Wimbledon is beyond my wildest dreams, let alone with an ace – but I’ve been practicing my serve for so long, I guess I saved it for the best moment! I’m so happy to be holding this trophy.

“This has been my dream since I was six years old.”

The win means that Bartoli will re-enter the world’s top ten at number seven once the updated WTA Rankings are released on Monday. She also leaves the All England Club 1.6 million pounds richer.