Boris Becker and wife divorce, reach alimony agreement

A German court yesterday granted a divorce to the former world tennis champion, Boris Becker, and his wife, Barbara, just over a month after the news that their marriage was in trouble, a court official said.

The divorce followed a reported settlement reached in the United States on the terms of the split, in which the German tennis star and his estranged wife agreed an out-of-court alimony settlement reportedly worth DM30 million (£12 million).

The couple, who separated last December after seven years of marriage, agreed on the figure over the weekend.

It is double the amount Becker offered to pay initially and six times a sum set in a premarital agreement.

"They reached a global settlement and they resolved all issues. It was a very good settlement for Mr Becker and for the children," said Becker's lawyer, Mr Robert Kohlman.

Last month, Ms Barbara Becker left Germany and moved into the couple's holiday home in Miami with their two children, Elias, 16 months, and Noah, who turned seven last week.

Becker accused her of kidnapping their children and filed for divorce in Germany. Ms Becker responded by filing a petition in Miami demanding custody of the two children. Last week the battle was played out in a Miami court before television cameras until the couple agreed to negotiate in private.

The couple, who have received death threats in the past, will share custody of their children, while Becker has agreed to continue paying for round-the-clock security.

The couple announced their separation in a statement last month, saying they had "drifted apart". Days later a woman came forward claiming she had given birth to the three-time Wimbledon champion's love child.

Ms Angela Ermakova, a Russian model living in London, claims Becker made her pregnant in the broom cupboard of a fashionable London restaurant during the Wimbledon tournament and has started a paternity suit.

Becker denies that he is the father of Ms Ermakova's 10month-old daughter, Anna, dubbed "The Wimbledon Baby" by German tabloids. He says Ms Ermakova is just another fan looking for money.

Becker had originally accepted he was the father and had agreed to provide for her, she says.

But once the child was born he changed his mind.

"If I was doing it for the money, the baby is nine months old, I could have already made millions," Ms Ermakova said.