Pierre Geelhand de Merxem

Pierre Geelhand de Merxem was a Belgian tennis player of the 1930s and 1940s, who lived from 1910 to 1982. He was Belgium's national singles champion in 1938 and won a further 12 national titles in doubles. In 1946 he won through to the third round at Wimbledon, losing in four sets to Budge Patty, and in 1948 he was beaten in the third round of the French Championships by the 15th seed Marcello del Bello in five sets. Between 1936 and 1948 he featured in 14 Davis Cup ties for Belgium and was non-playing captain of the Belgian sides that were Inter-Zonal finalists in 1953 and 1957. During the 1970s he served as chairman of the Royal Belgian Tennis Federation.