Early life

Tauziat was born in Bangui, Central African Republic. She is a first cousin of Didier Deschamps, a former French football player. About a week after Tauziat reached the Wimbledon final on 4 July 1998, Didier led France to win the World Cup on 12 July 1998.

Career

Tauziat turned professional in 1984. She won her first singles title in 1990. She would reach her only Grand Slam singles final at the 1998 Wimbledon Championships, losing to Jana Novotná. Her appearance in this final was the first by a Frenchwoman since Suzanne Lenglen in 1925.

Tauziat was runner-up with partner Kimberly Po in the 2001 US Open women's doubles final, losing to the team of Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs. She was a runner-up in doubles with partner Alexandra Fusai at the 1997 and 1998 Chase Championships. She was part of 1997 French Fed Cup team, which won its first title in the history of the competition.

Tauziat reached her career-high singles ranking of World No. 3 at the age of 32 years and 6 months in the spring of 2000, making her the oldest woman to debut in the top three and the fourth oldest to be ranked in the top three. She retired from the WTA Tour tennis circuit after the 2003 French Open, after having played only doubles in 2002 and 2003. Tauziat won 8 singles titles and 25 doubles titles during her career.

Tauziat wrote a book with the title "Les Dessous du tennis féminin" (published in 2001 in French) in which she gave her insights about life on the women's professional tennis circuit. In 2004, Tauziat received a state honour - le chevalier de la Légion d'honneur - from French President Jacques Chirac for her contributions to international tennis. Tauziat was an official WTA tour mentor to French tennis player Marion Bartoli beginning in 2003.

Personal

Tauziat married Ramuncho Palaurena on 16 July 2005. The couple have three daughters, one born in 2005 and twin girls in June 2009.

Major finals

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 1 (0 titles, 1 runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1998	Wimbledon	Grass	Jana Novotná	6-4, 7-6(7-2)

Women's doubles: 1 (0 titles, 1 runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	2001	US Open	Hard	Kimberly Po-Messerli	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	6-2, 5-7, 7-5

Year-End Championships finals

Doubles: 2 (0 titles, 2 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Location	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1997	New York City	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Jana Novotná	6-7(5-7), 6-3, 6-2
Runner-up	1998	New York City	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	6-7(6-8), 7-5, 6-3

WTA Tour Finals

Singles: 22 (8-14)

Winner — Legend Grand Slam tournaments (0-1) WTA Tour Championships (0-0) Tier I (1-1) Tier II (3-5) Tier III (3-3) Tier IV (0-3) Tier V (1-1)

Titles by Surface Hard (1-5) Grass (3-4) Clay (0-1) Carpet (4-4)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1.	11 July 1988	Nice	Clay	Sandra Cecchini	5-7, 4-6
Runner-up	2.	22 August 1988	Mahwah	Hard	Steffi Graf	0-6, 1-6
Runner-up	3.	5 February 1990	Wichita	Hard (i)	Dinky Van Rensburg	6-2, 5-7, 2-6
Winner	1.	24 September 1990	Bayonne	Hard (i)	Anke Huber	6-3, 7-6(10-8)
Runner-up	4.	7 October 1991	Zürich	Carpet	Steffi Graf	4-6, 4-6
Runner-up	5.	23 March 1992	San Antonio	Hard	Martina Navratilova	2-6, 1-6
Runner-up	6.	28 September 1992	Bayonne	Hard (i)	Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere	7-6(7-4), 2-6, 3-6
Winner	2.	1 November 1993	Quebec City	Carpet	Katerina Maleeva	6-4, 6-1
Winner	3.	19 June 1995	Eastbourne	Grass	Chanda Rubin	3-6, 6-0, 7-5
Runner-up	7.	10 June 1996	Birmingham	Grass	Meredith McGrath	6-2, 4-6, 4-6
Winner	4.	9 June 1997	Birmingham	Grass	Yayuk Basuki	2-6, 6-2, 6-2
Runner-up	8.	13 October 1997	Zürich	Carpet	Lindsay Davenport	6-7(3-7), 5-7
Runner-up	9.	3 November 1997	Chicago	Carpet	Lindsay Davenport	0-6, 5-7
Runner-up	10.	22 June 1998	Wimbledon	Grass	Jana Novotná	4-6, 6-7(2-7)
Runner-up	11.	2 November 1998	Leipzig	Carpet	Steffi Graf	3-6, 4-6
Runner-up	12.	7 June 1999	Birmingham	Grass	Julie Halard-Decugis	2-6, 6-3, 4-6
Runner-up	13.	14 June 1999	Eastbourne	Grass	Natasha Zvereva	6-0, 5-7, 3-6
Winner	5.	18 October 1999	Moscow	Carpet	Barbara Schett	2-6, 6-4, 6-1
Winner	6.	1 November 1999	Leipzig	Carpet	Květa Hrdličková	6-1, 6-3
Winner	7.	8 February 2000	Paris	Carpet	Serena Williams	7-5, 6-2
Runner-up	14.	19 February 2001	Dubai	Hard	Martina Hingis	4-6, 4-6
Winner	8.	11 June 2001	Birmingham	Grass	Miriam Oremans	6-3, 7-5

Doubles: 58 (25-33)

Winner — Legend Grand Slam tournaments (0-1) WTA Tour Championships (0-2) Tier I (4-7) Tier II (9-10) Tier III (6-12) Tier IV (5-0) Tier V (0-1) Virginia Slims (1-0)

Titles by Surface Hard (6-10) Grass (1-4) Clay (5-7) Carpet (13-12)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1.	28 September 1987	Paris	Clay	Isabelle Demongeot	Sandra Cecchini Sabrina Goleš	1-6, 6-3, 6-3
Winner	2.	9 May 1988	Berlin	Clay	Isabelle Demongeot	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Runner-up	1.	11 July 1988	Nice	Clay	Isabelle Demongeot	Catherine Suire Catherine Tanvier	4-6, 6-4, 2-6
Winner	3.	17 October 1988	Zürich	Carpet	Isabelle Demongeot	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6-3, 6-3
Runner-up	2.	24 October 1988	Brighton	Carpet	Isabelle Demongeot	Lori McNeil Betsy Nagelsen	6-7(5-7), 6-2, 6-7(4-7)
Winner	4.	1 May 1989	Hamburg	Clay	Isabelle Demongeot	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	w/o
Runner-up	3.	16 October 1989	Zürich	Carpet	Judith Wiesner	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	3-6, 6-3, 4-6
Runner-up	4.	12 February 1990	Chicago	Carpet	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	Martina Navratilova Anne Smith	7-6(11-9), 4-6, 3-6
Winner	5.	22 October 1990	Brighton	Carpet	Helena Suková	Jo Durie Natasha Zvereva	6-1, 6-4
Runner-up	5.	22 April 1991	Barcelona	Clay	Judith Wiesner	Martina Navratilova Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	1-6, 3-6
Runner-up	6.	29 July 1991	San Diego	Hard	Gigi Fernández	Jill Hetherington Kathy Rinaldi	4-6, 6-3, 2-6
Winner	6.	23 September 1991	Bayonne	Carpet	Patricia Tarabini	Rachel McQuillan Catherine Tanvier	6-3 ret.
Runner-up	7.	20 April 1992	Barcelona	Clay	Judith Wiesner	Conchita Martínez Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	4-6, 1-6
Winner	7.	11 January 1993	Melbourne	Hard	Nicole Provis	Cammy MacGregor Shaun Stafford	1-6, 6-3, 6-3
Runner-up	8.	1 November 1993	Quebec City	Hard (i)	Katerina Maleeva	Katrina Adams Manon Bollegraf	4-6, 4-6
Runner-up	9.	18 April 1994	Barcelona	Clay	Julie Halard	Larisa Neiland Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	2-6, 4-6
Winner	8.	8 August 1994	Los Angeles	Hard	Julie Halard	Jana Novotná Lisa Raymond	6-1, 0-6, 6-1
Winner	9.	31 October 1994	Quebec City	Carpet	Elna Reinach	Chanda Rubin Linda Wild	6-4, 6-3
Winner	10.	20 February 1995	Linz	Carpet	Meredith McGrath	Iva Majoli Petra Schwarz	6-1, 6-2
Runner-up	10.	12 February 1996	Paris	Carpet	Julie Halard-Decugis	Kristie Boogert Jana Novotná	4-6, 3-6
Runner-up	11.	8 March 1996	Indian Wells	Hard	Julie Halard-Decugis	Chanda Rubin Brenda Schultz-McCarthy	1-6, 4-6
Runner-up	12.	10 June 1996	Birmingham	Grass	Lori McNeil	Elizabeth Smylie Linda Wild	3-6, 6-3, 1-6
Winner	11.	30 September 1996	Leipzig	Carpet	Kristie Boogert	Sabine Appelmans Miriam Oremans	6-4, 6-4
Winner	12.	21 October 1996	Luxembourg	Carpet	Kristie Boogert	Barbara Rittner Dominique Van Roost	2-6, 6-4, 6-2
Runner-up	13.	4 November 1996	Oakland	Carpet	Irina Spîrlea	Lindsay Davenport Mary Joe Fernández	1-6, 3-6
Winner	13.	3 February 1997	Linz	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Eva Melicharová Helena Vildová	4-6, 6-3, 6-1
Runner-up	14.	7 March 1997	Indian Wells	Hard	Lisa Raymond	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	3-6, 2-6
Runner-up	15.	9 June 1997	Birmingham	Grass	Linda Wild	Katrina Adams Larisa Neiland	2-6, 3-6
Runner-up	16.	18 August 1997	Atlanta	Hard	Alexandra Fusai	Nicole Arendt Manon Bollegraf	7-6(7-5), 3-6, 2-6
Runner-up	17.	20 October 1997	Quebec City	Hard (i)	Alexandra Fusai	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	4-6, 7-5, 5-7
Winner	14.	3 November 1997	Chicago	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Monica Seles	6-3, 6-2
Runner-up	18.	17 November 1997	Chase Championships	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Jana Novotná	7-6(7-5), 3-6, 2-6
Winner	15.	23 February 1998	Linz	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Anna Kournikova Larisa Neiland	6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Runner-up	19.	5 March 1998	Indian Wells	Hard	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	4-6, 6-2, 4-6
Runner-up	20.	11 May 1998	Berlin	Clay	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	3-6, 0-6
Winner	16.	18 May 1998	Strasbourg	Clay	Alexandra Fusai	Yayuk Basuki Caroline Vis	6-4, 6-3
Runner-up	21.	3 August 1998	San Diego	Hard	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	2-6, 1-6
Winner	17.	24 August 1998	New Haven	Hard	Alexandra Fusai	Mariaan de Swardt Jana Novotná	6-1, 6-0
Runner-up	22.	16 November 1998	Chase Championships	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lindsay Davenport Natasha Zvereva	7-6(8-6), 5-7, 3-6
Winner	18.	8 February 1999	Prostějov	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Květa Hrdličková Helena Vildová	3-6, 6-2, 6-1
Runner-up	23.	15 February 1999	Hanover	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Serena Williams Venus Williams	7-5, 2-6, 2-6
Runner-up	24.	3 May 1999	Rome	Clay	Alexandra Fusai	Martina Hingis Anna Kournikova	2-6, 2-6
Winner	19.	10 May 1999	Berlin	Clay	Alexandra Fusai	Jana Novotná Patricia Tarabini	6-3, 7-5
Runner-up	25.	17 May 1999	Strasbourg	Clay	Alexandra Fusai	Elena Likhovtseva Ai Sugiyama	6-2, 6-7(6-8), 1-6
Runner-up	26.	11 October 1999	Zürich	Hard (i)	Natasha Zvereva	Lindsay Davenport Rennae Stubbs	2-6, 2-6
Runner-up	27.	31 January 2000	Tokyo	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Martina Hingis Mary Pierce	4-6, 1-6
Winner	20.	19 June 2000	Eastbourne	Grass	Ai Sugiyama	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	2-6, 6-3, 7-6(7-3)
Winner	21.	14 August 2000	Montreal	Hard	Martina Hingis	Julie Halard-Decugis Ai Sugiyama	6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Winner	22.	25 September 2000	Luxembourg	Carpet	Alexandra Fusai	Lubomira Bacheva Cristina Torrens Valero	6-3, 7-6(7-0)
Runner-up	28.	16 October 2000	Linz	Carpet	Ai Sugiyama	Amélie Mauresmo Chanda Rubin	4-6, 4-6
Runner-up	29.	5 February 2001	Paris	Carpet	Kimberly Po	Iva Majoli Virginie Razzano	3-6, 5-7
Runner-up	30.	12 February 2001	Nice	Carpet	Kimberly Po	Émilie Loit Anne-Gaëlle Sidot	6-1, 2-6, 0-6
Winner	23.	19 March 2001	Key Biscayne	Hard	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	6-0, 6-4
Runner-up	31.	11 June 2001	Birmingham	Grass	Kimberly Po-Messerli	Cara Black Elena Likhovtseva	1-6, 2-6
Winner	24.	5 August 2001	Los Angeles	Hard	Kimberly Po-Messerli	Nicole Arendt Caroline Vis	6-3, 7-5
Runner-up	32.	27 August 2001	US Open	Hard	Kimberly Po-Messerli	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	2-6, 7-5, 5-7
Winner	25.	24 September 2001	Leipzig	Carpet	Elena Likhovtseva	Květa Hrdličková Barbara Rittner	6-4, 6-2
Runner-up	33.	10 June 2002	Birmingham	Grass	Kimberly Po-Messerli	Shinobu Asagoe Els Callens	4-6, 3-6

Grand Slam performance timeline

Singles

Tournament	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	Career SR	Career Win-Loss
Australian Open	A	A	NH	A	A	A	A	A	A	4R	1R	A	A	A	A	A	2R	A	0 / 3	4-3
French Open	1R	3R	2R	4R	4R	1R	4R	QF	4R	3R	2R	3R	2R	3R	1R	2R	3R	1R	0 / 18	30-18
Wimbledon	A	LQ	2R	2R	2R	1R	4R	4R	QF	4R	3R	3R	3R	QF	F	QF	1R	QF	0 / 16	40-16
US Open	A	LQ	1R	2R	2R	3R	4R	1R	2R	4R	2R	3R	2R	1R	4R	3R	QF	4R	0 / 16	27-16
SR	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 4	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 1	0 / 53	101-53
Year End Ranking	296	112	66	25	26	25	18	13	14	18	35	27	22	11	10	7	10	13

Doubles

Tournament	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	Career SR
Australian Open	A	A	NH	A	A	A	A	A	A	3R	2R	A	A	A	A	A	2R	A	A	A	0 / 3
French Open	A	1R	3R	QF	3R	3R	SF	3R	QF	QF	SF	QF	3R	SF	QF	SF	SF	QF	2R	1R	0 / 19
Wimbledon	A	3R	1R	2R	3R	1R	3R	3R	3R	2R	3R	3R	2R	3R	2R	2R	2R	SF	QF	A	0 / 18
US Open	A	2R	1R	1R	1R	3R	2R	3R	3R	2R	1R	QF	1R	QF	2R	3R	3R	F	A	A	0 / 17
SR	0 / 0	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 4	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 1	0 / 57
Year End Ranking	272	85	63	40	28	28	18	38	61	29	22	20	14	13	7	14	9	5	105	397

• NH = tournament not held.
• A = did not participate in the tournament.
• SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]