April 5, 1977
Professional tennis player Jonathan “Yoni” Erlich is born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. His family makes aliyah when he is 1 year old and settles in Haifa, where he starts playing tennis at an early age. Training at the Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports in Netanya, Erlich meets Andy Ram, who becomes his doubles partner.
In January 2008, Erlich and Ram become the first Israelis to win a Grand Slam championship, defeating Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement of France, 7-5, 7-6, in the Australian Open. “We are so happy to be the first Israelis. We made history today,” Ram says. “It’s a great day for us, for our family, for Israel, for everybody.”
Erlich and Ram represent Israel in three Olympic Games (2004, 2008 and 2012). In the 2012 London Games, they defeat world No. 1 Roger Federer and his partner, Stanislaw Wawrinka, before losing in the quarterfinals to the eventual gold medalists, the Bryan brothers from the United States.
Erlich wins over $2 million and 22 championships over the course of a career in which he is ranked as high as fifth in the world among doubles players. He retires in 2022 and becomes the director of high-performance programs for the nonprofit Israel Tennis and Education Centers in 2023. He lives in Tel Aviv.
