On April 30, 1993, Monica Seles, then the world No. 1 and a dominant figure in women's tennis, was stabbed on court by an obsessed fan during a changeover at a WTA tournament in Hamburg, Germany. The assailant, a German man who later said he wanted to help another player regain the top ranking, lunged at Seles from the stands and stabbed her in the back with a knife. Seles was quickly helped off court and taken to hospital; the wound required stitches and left her physically able to recover but deeply affected her psychologically. She did not return to competition until 1995. The attack occurred at a time when Seles had won multiple Grand Slam titles and was widely seen as the sport's dominant player. The incident stunned the tennis world and prompted immediate questions about player safety and spectator access at tournaments. Tournament organizers and tennis authorities faced criticism for lax security measures that allowed a spectator to approach close enough to stab a player seated for a changeover. In the months and years that followed, professional tennis implemented stricter security protocols at events worldwide, including increased barriers between courts and stands, more security personnel, and tighter controls on court access. Legally, the assailant was arrested at the scene. He was later tried and found guilty of causing bodily harm; German courts considered aspects of his mental state in sentencing and subsequent proceedings. The attack also triggered public debate about how to balance open spectator access—long a part of tennis culture—with the need to protect players from potential violence. Seles's recovery was not solely physical. The psychological trauma contributed to a long absence from the tour; she has said in later interviews that she struggled with fear and a sense of vulnerability after the stabbing. Her return in 1995 was cautious and did not immediately restore her previous dominance. Though she did win another Grand Slam title (the 1996 Australian Open), her career trajectory and earnings were affected by the interruption, and many players and observers have speculated about how much more she might have achieved without the attack. The incident had broader cultural repercussions. It intensified conversations about athlete security across sports, highlighted the risks posed by obsessed fans, and underscored the need for mental health resources for both victims and perpetrators. Media coverage at the time mixed shock and sympathy for Seles with scrutiny of tournament safety practices. Over time, the stabbing has been referenced in discussions of both Seles's legacy and the development of modern event security standards in professional tennis. Historical accounts of the event rely on contemporaneous news reports, court records, and later interviews with Seles and others involved. Some details—such as the assailant’s precise motivations and the psychological assessments used in court—are reported with varying emphasis in different sources; where assessments differed, contemporary reporting reflected those uncertainties. The central facts, however—the date, location, Seles’s injury, the assailant’s arrest, and the long-term impact on Seles’s career—are consistently documented in news archives and official records.