Goran Ivanisevic holds one record that will never be broken: he is the only player in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam singles title as a wildcard (Wimbledon 2001, ranked No. 125). He also held the Wimbledon all-time ace record for nearly two decades, set the ATP season ace record in 1996 (1,477), and remains one of a tiny group to win Grand Slams as both player and coach.
Permanent Records — Cannot Be Broken
Only wildcard to win a Grand Slam singles title (Open Era)
Unique · Permanent
Record: Goran Ivanisevic is the only player in the Open Era (post-1968) to win a Grand Slam men's singles title as a wildcard. He won Wimbledon 2001 ranked No. 125 after being granted a wildcard by the All England Club.
Lowest-ranked Wimbledon champion in the Open Era
Still holds
Record: World No. 125 at the time of his 2001 Wimbledon victory. No lower-ranked player has won Wimbledon before or since in the Open Era.
Could theoretically be broken by a lower-ranked wildcard winner in a future tournament.
Most Wimbledon finals before winning the title
Shares record
Record: Ivanisevic lost three Wimbledon finals (1992, 1994, 1998) before winning in 2001 on his fourth appearance. He shares this distinction with other four-time finalists, but the combination of three defeats and a wildcard triumph is unique.
Source: Wimbledon tournament archives.
Records Currently Held
Only player to win a Grand Slam as both wildcard player and Grand Slam–winning coach
Unique
Record: Ivanisevic won Wimbledon 2001 as a wildcard player and later coached Marin Cilic to the 2014 US Open — making him one of a very small group to win Grand Slams in both capacities, and the only one to have done so as a wildcard player.
Croatia's first Grand Slam men's singles champion
Still holds
Record: Ivanisevic's 2001 Wimbledon title made him the first Croatian to win a Grand Slam singles title (men's). Marin Cilic later won the 2014 US Open, so Ivanisevic remains the first but no longer the only Croatian Grand Slam champion.
He remains Croatia's first Grand Slam singles title winner.
Croatia's first Olympic tennis medal
Historical first
Record: Ivanisevic won two bronze medals at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics — in singles and doubles — representing Croatia as an independent nation for the first time. These were Croatia's first-ever Olympic tennis medals.
Former Records — Since Broken
Coaching Distinctions
Coach of the most successful Grand Slam winner in men's history
Part of record team
Distinction: As head coach of Novak Djokovic from 2019 to 2024, Ivanisevic was part of the team when Djokovic surpassed Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to become the outright leader in men's Grand Slam singles titles.
Djokovic won Grand Slam titles at all four majors during this period. Source:
ATP Tour.
Sources: Wikipedia — Goran Ivanisevic · ATP Tour · Wimbledon champions list · Tennis Hall of Fame.
Record status accurate as of May 2026. Some pre-digital era statistics rely on estimates and contemporary sources.