flesl.net easy paired story 2-9a: Martina Hingis & Dubravko Rajcevic

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Martina Hingis and Dubravko Rajcevic (easy version)

In 2001 Martina Hingis was the best female tennis player in the world. She was only twenty years old but she had already won more than $US12,000,000 playing tennis.

In 2001, Dubravko Rajcevic, was sent to jail for three years because he had been stalking Martina.

The English verb "stalk" means "to follow an animal when you are hunting." The verb is also used to mean "follow another person." Sometimes one person stalks another because they want to hurt them or kill them. Often, however the reason for stalking is love.

In many countries, it is now against the law to stalk someone because you love them even if you never hurt them.

Dubravko stalked Martina because he was in love with her and wanted to marry her. It began in 1999. Dubravko had just got divorced and was living by himself. He got interested in watching women's tennis on television. He got especially interested in Martina and, after a while, he fell in love with her.

Soon after he fell in love with Martina, Dubravko learned that she was playing tennis in Germany. He found out what hotel she was staying in and phoned her there. The first time Dubrako phoned, Martina would not talk to him. But he kept calling and finally she did speak to him. She told him to get out of her life.

Later, Dubravko followed Martina to her home in Switzerland. He went to her house with a bouquet of flowers and rang the doorbell. Dubravko also followed Martina to England. There, she felt that she could not play well because she knew Dubravko was watching her.

Then, finally, Dubravko followed Martina to Florida, and that is where was arrested. The police asked him to promise that he would not stalk Martina any more, but Dubravko wouldn't do that. So he went to jail. Later, he went on trial.

At his trial, Dubravko laughed and smiled a lot. Martina was there and he spoke to her even though the judge told him not to. He said he was sure that, in the past, Martina had loved him just as he loved her. He also said he didn't think she loved him any more, but that was only because he had been in jail for a year and she had probably found someone new.

- information from The Miami Herald, 01.04.03 and The National Post, 01.04.03 and 01.04.04

tennis:
game in which a ball is hit “back and forth” over a net (“back and forth” means "first in one direction, then in the opposite direction")

stalk:
follow a person because you want to frighten them or because you love them; follow an animal or a person to catch or kill them

divorce:
a legal end to a marriage

in love:
if you are “in love” with someone, you feel very strong, positive emotions toward them and also feel sexually attracted to them

fall in love with someone:
the moment you fall in love with someone is the moment you come to have the feeling of being in love with that person

bouquet:
a group of cut flowers held together in a container

ring a doorbell:
cause a doorbell to ring (usually by pushing a button)

trial:
procedure in a court room in which a person accused of a crime is judged (found guilty or innocent)