Near Death Escape for Roddick and Others...

[david aames]

Someone trying to pull a Sampras?

[Fee]

Tennis star cool during deadly fire

By Karen Crouse, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 2, 2004

The thing that struck Blanche Roddick, at home in Boca Raton, was how calm her son sounded. It was early Saturday morning in Rome, and Andy Roddick was standing on the balcony of his burning hotel, speaking into his cellphone and describing in a newsman's measured clip the chaos all around him.

Guests at the Grand Hotel Parco dei Principi were trying to escape the licking flames by jumping onto the wraparound balcony outside the tennis player's sixth-floor suite. He heard screaming outside his door.

When Blanche, summoning the most soothing voice she could muster under the circumstances, suggested that Andy -- in Rome to play in this week's Italian Open -- wet some bathroom towels and stick them under his door, he corrected her.

"Mom," he said, "it's way beyond that."

Roddick, the reigning U.S. Open champion and the No. 2-ranked tennis player in the world, had awakened about 5 a.m. to an acrid smell. The Boca resident padded to his front door, swung it open and was assaulted by billowy black smoke.

There were people in the hallway, groping for fresh air. Some of them were hysterical. Roddick, 21, pulled close to a dozen people into his spacious upgraded digs -- the hotel management had insisted on opening its Royal Suite to him -- and herded them onto the balcony.

There they huddled, awaiting help. Soot was falling from the sky. Bodies were landing like birds on Roddick's terrace.


Fierce foes now comrades

Sjeng Schalken, a 6-foot-4 tennis player from the Netherlands, dropped like an albatross into Roddick's open arms. He had jumped from his room on the seventh floor.

Schalken's wife, Ricky, was another of the half-dozen people Roddick guided to a safe landing. In January at the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam event of the year, Roddick had faced Schalken in the quarterfinals and dispatched him in three breezy sets.

They had been fierce opponents then. But now, Roddick and Schalken were comrades, banding together. As the heat grew more intense, the bodies on Roddick's balcony grew more dense. Roddick told his mother there were two dozen of them jumbled together, waiting to be rescued.

At one point, Roddick told his mother, "I have my head about me. It's amazing how calm I am."

Somebody had to be. A few people on the balcony grew more panicky with every passing minute. Roddick had to get in the faces of a couple of people who were easily twice his age and tell them in the nicest way possible to get a grip.

On the floor directly below Roddick, an American from Georgia had tied bedsheets together to make a rope. James Lawery, 58, tried to shimmy to safety from his balcony. He wouldn't make it. He fell to his death.

Bernice and Paul Busque, a Canadian couple in their 60s, were the other casualties of the blaze. They died of asphyxiation.

Roddick was still on the phone with his mother when the emergency vehicles screeched to a halt in front of the building and firefighters spilled out. She had to laugh at what she heard him say next.

"Hey," Roddick cried out. "You guys with the ladder. If you come over here, I'll buy you pizza!"

That's Blanche and Jerry's youngest son. Ever the entertainer, always playing to the crowd.

Before they hung up, Blanche Roddick could hear Andy delivering instructions to the people around him. Her heart swelled with pride when the voice she knows better than her own said, "I'll be the last one down."

And people wonder how Roddick kept his composure when he was down two sets and had a match point against him in his U.S. Open semifinal with David Nalbandian.


Two Americans questioned

In time, Roddick made it to the ground floor of the property. Several people he recognized were already standing outside. The 200 guests who were evacuated included Mike and Bob Bryan, the No. 1-ranked U.S. doubles team. They were barefoot and dazed.

There was Max Mirnyi, a big-server from Belarus. He was hard to miss. The 6-foot-5 player, clad only in shorts, was forlornly clutching a blanket around his shoulders.

Two young American female tourists were questioned by police over the origin of the blaze, which started in their room, gutting it and another.

The other guests were taken to the Austrian Embassy, where they waited in a long snaking line for the privilege of using the restrooms and freshening themselves up. Later in the day they were allowed back in the hotel to retrieve their belongings.

The rackets of Marat Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champion, were reduced to piles of ash. Roddick's stuff survived the fire. Nobody had to tell him how fortunate he was.

"Last night's tragedy seems surreal," Roddick said through his sister-in-law, Ginger Roddick. "My heart goes out to the families of the deceased."

Last month, Roddick wowed the Delray Beach Tennis Center crowd with his bravura, winning both his singles matches to lead the U.S. to a Davis Cup victory against Sweden.

On Saturday, Roddick's bravery was front and center.

karen_crouse@pbpost.com

[Deuce]

So now we know that the whole 'Clark Kent' thing was bogus - Superman is really Andy Roddick, tennis player.

The article that Fee posted is a fine example of 'journalism' at its absolute worst. Using a tragic circumstance to market an athlete. It's simply so low class that it never, ever would have been published by any self respecting editor.

"The Boca resident padded to his front door, swung it open and was assaulted by billowy black smoke."

"Bodies were landing like birds on Roddick's terrace.
Sjeng Schalken, a 6-foot-4 tennis player from the Netherlands, dropped like an albatross into Roddick's open arms."

Is this for real? When's the movie coming out? An absolute disgrace.

This woman should have her keyboard permanently confiscated.

The article that Susan posted is far more down to earth.

[PureCarlosMoyaDrive]

Good job by Roddick though, that's pretty courageous. I sure know that I would be scared off my john in that situation. Hope Safin can jack some sticks quick, isn't Head Europe probably pretty near there?

[tykrum]

Deuce, do you think that this lady writing the article that Fee posted is fabricating events that took place, or that she is exaggerating what happened? She definitely is presenting her story from a human interest standpoint, which contrasts the more strictly informational article that Susan posted. But she might just have more details than any of the other articles that you had read. I don't think she would make up a conversation that Roddick had with his mother, or exaggerate the other circumstances surrounding Roddick. I think this article is 'for real' and Roddick's actions are pretty darn brave and heroic, and Roddick should be only applauded for this. I don't understand why some people have to bring down something brave that occurs with a tennis player off the court. I don't have a problem with the Roddick-bashing for what he may do on court, but I think its ridiculous that some people need to make his actions in this situation seem more ordinary just so that those people won't be able to feel anything good for him. But I can say that before this incident, Roddick was my favorite player to watch on court for his heart and determination. Now he is also a guy that I hope I could emulate his cool head in trying times.

[Deuce]

"Deuce, do you think that this lady writing the article that Fee posted is fabricating events that took place, or that she is exaggerating what happened?"

Yes.

Further, the style of the embellishment is sickening. It's beyond 'brown-nosing'. The article seems to have been written by a love-sick teenager who absolutely worships Roddick. It's an absolute melodramatic, sensationalistic embarrassment.

"Her heart swelled with pride when the voice she knows better than her own said, "I'll be the last one down.""

Man, this kind of thing really makes me sick. If someone wrote such bunk about me - even if every word were true (which in this case I would bet is certainly not the case), I'd demand a public apology.

Were the article written about any other player, my sentiments would be the same. But something tells me this kind of trash simply wouldn't be written about another player. These types seem to gravitate to Roddick pretty much exclusively.

[roundiesee]

Bad journalism aside, I think what Andy did should be applauded. He may not be exactly Mr Nice Guy but after this incident I think we all should give him credit for his actions. I guess Susan was right about him all along.

[pound cat]

I'm waiting for the book to be published so the true story will be revealed. After all, everyting that's in print must be true. Yeah, right.

[devila]

Those of us don't find it difficult to recognize and appreciate others' good deeds. It's not his fault that their fave players weren't as alert about the fire. I couldn't care less about what overdramatic writers say.

The early reports differ wildly. The sources that play up Roddick's role are quoting the ATP publicity man and Roddick's mother.
This looks like an unfortunate attempt to turn a tragedy into a player- marketing triumph. I agree with Deuce's observations about the over-the-top "tribute" by Fee.

[Chanchai]

Bottom line: It sucks the whole fire happened and there were three casualties (all the best to their friends and families). Thank goodness it wasn't worse.

On a lesser note, I hope the players affected can play their game in Rome (even though I won't be able to watch the tournament--except maybe the highlights). I wonder if the tournament will go weird after this.

And well... praise to everyone/anyone who helps out and acts with bravery without dire consequences anywhere in the world on any day or moment. Whoever they are. If the story about Roddick is true, awesome. But it's not like he single-handedly saved everyone. But we heard a publicist's comment on the top-ranked player in the unfortunate event. (Take it as you will, I figure all the other players did their part too, as did everyone in the fire--in their own way at least).

I'm not a Roddick hater (I admit I'm a fan of his), heck, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and assume what was said had substance to it. But I still hold the view that:
1) The event itself sucked (the fire) and unfortunately, there were casualties.
2) Many people did their part to avoid further disaster/tragedy, everyone should be commended. (forgot to stress that many people particularly involves/includes authorities, firefighters, etc...)

-Chanchai

[Roforot]

I'll believe it when I hear it out of the horses mouth... the Fee article may be a prank. It sounds like it was written by a teenager. I'm sure that Schallken and Mirni and Roddick will have ample time to interview before the French open.

[devila]

http://www.fotodatabase.nl/foto/Spor...and-Sjeng2.jpg

http://www.fotodatabase.nl/foto/Spor...rand-Sjeng.jpg

[sseemiller]

The article was published in the Palm Beach Post, which is Roddick territory.

I'm sure Blanche Roddick was interviewed, and it is her info that is the basis for the story. I think it was embellished for dramatic effect, but I think the basic facts are true. The reaction to the article is more OTT than the article, IMO.

And I absolutely believe that when the fire department arrived, Andy yelled down, "You guys with the ladder. If you come over here, I'll buy you pizza!"

Here's what Brad Gilbert wrote about the incident. I'm sure he's part of the media machine, too. I think his last paragraph says it all. If the fire had been worse, we could have lost a sizable part of the ATP tour.

2.2004 -

In all the years that I’ve stayed in hotels on the tour I’ve never been involved in a more hairier scene than our first night in Rome. I’d gotten up at 4:37AM to go down to the gym, but they told me that it was closed until 6:00AM. So I went back to sleep and at about 5:30AM I wake up and look out the window and I think to myself “man it’s foggier here than in San Fran.”


But when I got closer and looked out I saw flames shooting up. I’m thinking Holy sh—t time to bail. I put on my shoes and I’m out the door. All I could see was black smoke. I went back into my room and grabbed a towel to cover my face. I started pounding on doors. I then hear this old man screaming for help. I grabbed the old man, as he was bent over and about to go down. I yanked him up and kept pounding on doors, trying to find the stairs. Once we got to the elevator I knew that we were close. We got to the staircase and bolted down to the first floor and made it out into the street.

There’s a bunch of people already standing in the street, but I don’t see Andy. I called out for him, nothing…Everyone’s is asking me “Where is Andy” I was staying on the 7th floor. Andy was on the 6th floor and his room had a deck.

Luckily Andy had woken up at 5:30AM to go the bathroom. He opens his door and same thing, thick black smoke. So he goes immediately to his balcony. It was a good thing for that deck because Schalken and his wife had to climb out of their room so they could get close to his deck. They had to jump to the balcony; the kid caught them and like four other people who had no other escape route.

About 37 minutes later they were all safely crane lifted off the kid’s deck. Andy was the last one evacuated from that balcony. He really showed his true character in the moment of crisis.

Mirnyi lost everything; he and his girlfriend had only their robes. Safin and Lundren looked totally haggard, as did Andy and many others. We to had to shower for 45 minutes to get all of the black off of us.

It hit him hard when he went back up to his room, when he saw how black the room was and how most everything was black. We just looked at each other. It was one of the few times I had nothing to say.

It was very scary stuff. It makes you realize a lot of things. It puts the game in perspective. It reminds me to be grateful and appreciate every breath. Today I wake up and I’m Chipper Jones.

[Frodo Baggins]

Scary. An I'm gonna Hurl.

[Anonymous]

Props to andy, shows kindness, selflessness and composure (which is why he is #2)

[Fee]

Hey could you guys stop saying 'the Fee article' Although I found and posted both articles originally at the RnR board I don't deserve the credit for either one (thanks Susan for putting the Herald article here when I went offline). I posted Karen Crouse's article because I thought the words from Blanche provided a different perspective, but I nearly laughed my head off when I read this article the first time because of the overly flowery language. I agree, the editor should have dowe some work on this and it should not have been published as is.

Tommy Haas has also posted on his website about the fire and what Andy did if anyone wants to read that.

[Feña14]

That behaviour by Roddick was shocking!!!

The Italian fire men were coming to save all the people in the Hotel and Roddick shouts:

"If you come over here i'll buy you a pizza!"

He's basically cheeking the Italians

Jerk!!

Liam

[The Franchise]

Yeah, damn that jerk Roddick. If it was me, I would have offered pizza AND beer.

[Roforot]

Originally Posted by The Franchise

Yeah, damn that jerk Roddick. If it was me, I would have offered pizza AND beer.

Good one!