Goran Ivanisevic

HE RUNS, he leaps, at times he skids. He thumps, exceedingly hard. He makes a lot of noise. He is emotional, and a crowd-puller. He can be deadly to his opponents, and all charm to them half an hour later. He knows God is on his side—which plainly is more than God knows, because, above all, he's erratic and generally he loses. This week was the astounding exception: to the roars of his Croatian compatriots, Goran Ivanisevic, a wild-card entrant out of sight in the world ratings, won the most treasured prize in tennis, the men's singles title at Wimbledon. And, though he is absolutely not a fanatic, a proud Croat he is, and a very appropriate symbol of Croat nationalism.