Former tennis champion Bob Hewitt has been convicted of rape and sexual assault by a South African court.
Australian-born Hewitt, 75, was convicted of carrying out attacks on young girls he was coaching in the 1980s and 90s.
Hewitt, who won Grand Slam doubles titles at Wimbledon, and the Australian, French, and US Opens throughout the 1960s and 70s, had denied the allegations.
At South Gauteng High Court, Judge Bert Bam said that he is satisfied that the three victims, two who claimed they had been raped and a third who claimed she had been sexually assaulted, were telling the truth.
The judge went on to say that the similarities between their testimony shows that Hewitt’s conduct was calculated, and that the evidence against him was “overwhelming”.
Hewitt, who became a South Africa citizen after marrying in 1967, was taken into custody to await sentencing.
