Johan Sjögren

Johan Sjögren (born in 1963) is a Swedish retired tennis player. He reached a career high ATP singles ranking of No. 510, which he achieved on 4 January 1981, and he achieved a career high ATP doubles ranking of No. 586, which he also achieved on 4 January 1981.

After a short unsuccessful professional career in which he played in the Swedish Open and Stockholm Open, Sjögren had a successful time at college in the USA where he became an All-American on four occasions for Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.

Career In 1977, the 14-year-old Sjögren participated in the prestigious European Junior Championships, and won gold in both the singles and doubles tournaments, beating Christian Schultes in the final of the former. In the latter, he paired with fellow countryman Jörgen Windahl, and in the final, they beat Schultes and P. Ewaldsen of Germany. first in 1976 after beating Windahl in the final, and again in 1978, beating the future world No. 7 Joakim Nyström in the final, 4–6, 6–4, 6–2.

Shortly after he turned 16 in 1979, Sjögren started competing in the ITF Junior Circuit in the under-18 category, mainly as a doubles player. In his first tournament, the 1979 Stockholm Open, he paired with fellow countryman Per Larsson, and lost in the first round to eventual runners-up Wojciech Fibak and Tom Okker. At the 1980 Swedish Open, he paired with future world No. 1 Mats Wilander, but they lost in the first round again, this time to Ángel Giménez and Marcos Hocevar. Sjögren turned pro in 1980, but failed to reach a single final in the ATP tour.

In 1982, the 19-year-old Sjögren moved to Edwardsville, Illinois, in the United States, to continue his studies at the Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, where he joined the men's tennis program of the SIU Edwardsville Cougars. Sjögren made the lineup as a freshman in the 1982–83 season and flourished, helping the team reach the national semi-finals of the NCAA Division II individual championships in both singles and doubles. As a sophomore during the 1983–84 season, Sjögren's role on the team grew. Once again, he helped the team reach the semi-finals in 1984. The seminar was organized by the Swedish Tennis Association together with PTCA (Professional Tennis Coaches Association) and Kings of Tennis, and parents were one of the subjects that was discussed.