| Helena Konanz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Date: | 1 February 1961 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Place: | Santa Barbara, California | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Office: | Penticton City Councillor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Term Start: | December 2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Term End: | December 2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Office1: | Penticton City Councillor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Term Start1: | December 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Module: |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Helena Konanz (née Manset) is an American tennis player and Canadian politician.
Manset attended UCLA for her undergraduate. In 1982, Manset as well as her partner Kathy O'Brien were defeated in the finals of the NCAA Women’s Doubles[1] and in 1982 and 1983 she was named as an All-American. She graduated from UCLA in 1984 with a degree in political science.
After being narrowly defeated in the NCAA Women's Doubles Finals Manset began to compete professionally. Manset had competed across the world including in the US Open and Wimbledon. She reached her peak in 1987 when she was ranked 228 overall in women's doubles. She retired from professional tennis on August 17, 1987 after 5 years as a pro player.
After she retired from tennis Manset began working for Nike which eventually lead to her moving to Canada to work in the sport equipment uniforms. After spending some time in the private sector, Manset (now Konanz) ran for the Penticton City Council and won with 3,737 votes.[2] Konanz was re-elected in 2014.[3]
In 2018, Konanz opted not to seek re-election and instead announced her candidacy for the Conservative Party of Canada for the 2019 Canadian federal election for the district of South Okanagan—West Kootenay. In September of the same year Konanz won the nomination and was formally announced as the riding's candidate by the Conservatives. In the election, held in October 2019, Konanz finished a close second to New Democratic Party incumbent Richard Cannings.[4] In 2021, a rematch resulted in Cannings winning with an increased majority.
Manset married Adam Konanz and changed her name to Helena Konanz in 1995. The couple have two children.
| Outcome | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | March 23, 1987 | Fresno, CA | Hard |  Lisa Seemann | Debbie Graham Cinda Gurney | 6–3, 1–6, 7–6(5) | |
| Runner Up | July 1, 1985 | Schenectady, NY | Hard | Cecilia Fernandez-Parker | Linda Gates Lynn Lewis | 7–6, 6–4 | |
| Runner Up | October 17, 1983 | Japan Open, | Hard | Micki Schillig |  Chris O’Neil Pam Whytcross | 7–6, 6–4 |