Leander Paes (born June 17, 1973) has been the flag bearer of Indian tennis for over a decade. Leander Paes was a part of the professional circuit and started representing India in the Davis Cup fixtures from 1991. Leander made the whole of India proud in 1996 when he won a bronze medal at the Atlanta Olympics. By achieving this feat, he became the first Indian in over 40 years to win a medal in an individual event.

Leander belongs to a family of sportspersons. Leander`s mother, Jennifer Paes, represented Indian in basketball and was also the captain of the Indian team in the 1980 Asian Basketball Championships. His father, Vece Paes, was a hockey player who was part of the 1972 Munich Olympics team that returned with a bronze medal. Leander trained at the Britannia Tennis Academy in Chennai in 1985. He was coached by Dave O`Meara in the Academy. The youngster rose to fame in 1990 when he captured the Junior Wimbledon title and the No.1 ranking in junior tennis.

However, his singles career never scaled great heights though he almost always bailed India out of tough situations in Davis Cup ties. In the meantime, he and partner Mahesh Bhupathi joined forces and tasted great success in doubles winning a handful of grand slam titles. At one point of time, they were the No.1 tennis pair in the world. But certain personal differences forced them to part way curtailing what could have been a glorious chapter in Indian tennis. The two however always come together whenever representing India in Davis Cup ties. Even after his split with Bhupathi, Paes continues to be a force on the doubles circuit and has even added to his tally of Grand Slam titles. The same can be said of Bhupathi also. But the magic the duo created on court together has unfortunately been lost. Paes and Bhupathi may have parted ways some years back, but their influence on tennis was so strong that it is difficult to talk of them separately even today

For his great contribution to Indian tennis, Leander was conferred upon with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award in the year 1996-1997.Some years in later on in 2001, the prestigious Padma Shri award was also bestowed upon him.

Leander`s Grand Slam success records, include:

Men`s Doubles

Year	Championship	Partner
1999	French Open	Mahesh Bhupati
1999	Wimbledon	Mahesh Bhupati
2001	French Open	Mahesh Bhupati

Mixed Doubles

Year	Championship	Partner
1999	Wimbledon	Lisa Raymond (USA)
2003	Australian Open	Martina Navratilova (USA)
2003	Wimbledon	Martina Navratilova (USA)