The story behind professional tennis player Vijay Amritraj's road to owning a Rolex begins in his home country of India during a childhood spent plagued with health issues. India's first professional sportsman spent most of his childhood in the hospital with a disease of the lungs. His doctors recommended to his parents that he partake in outdoor sports to help strengthen his frail body. Amritraj chose to take tennis lessons, an extraordinary expense for an Indian family at the time, which would not only help him get healthier, but also help pave his way to Wimbledon and other major tennis tournaments before he was twenty years old.
"I think tennis was my greatest education. It taught me about not just the world, but about myself and what one is able to achieve. Tennis gave me more than I could have ever asked for and my Rolex stands for exactly that. It makes you think of the impossible as nothing." Amritraj won the Newport Hall of Fame Tournament in 1976 and received a yellow gold Rolex Day-Date 36 in addition to his cash prize. At 23 years old, the athlete felt too young to wear a Rolex, but kept it on his wrist because it was a source of pride for him, especially given what he had to overcome to achieve his success in sports.
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| Professional Tennis Player Vijay Amritraj (photo: Rolex) |
After forty years, the gold Rolex is still on his wrist, as you can see in the video embedded below. The athlete credits his health and life accomplishments, which include being named a UN Messenger of Peace and carrying the Olympic Torch for India, to his involvement in sports. He sees his Day-Date as a symbol of how perseverance and dedication can lead to excellence and he wears it proudly. For information on Vijay Amritraj's story and a closer look at his vintage Day-Date, visit rolex.com.
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