1982: Born in Liege, Belgium, June 1.
1996: Plays in first ITF event.
1999: Turns professional. Becomes the fifth player to win her debut WTA tour event, beating top seed Sarah Pitkowski 6-1 6-2 in final in Antwerp.
2000: Breaks into world's top 50, but arm, foot and toe injuries limit her participation on tour.
2001: Ends the season inside the top 10 for the first time after reaching the semi-final at the French Open, losing to compatriot Kim Clijsters, and the Wimbledon final, losing to Venus Williams.
2002: Marries Pierre-Yves Hardenne.
Claims two further titles, including her first Tier I crown at the German Open.
2003: Wins her first two grand slam titles, beating Clijsters in the final of both the French and US Opens. Named WTA player of the year.
Reaches number one in the world.
2004: Wins her first Australian Open, again beating Clijsters.
Wins the gold medal at the Athens Olympics with a 6-3 6-3 win over Amelie Mauresmo.
Respiratory illness severely hampers her claycourt season and causes her early exit from the French Open.
Injury and fitness issues cause her to lose her final 10 events of the year after losing her world number one status with defeat at the US Open.
2005: Beats home favourite Mary Pierce 6-1 6-1 in the final to win her second French Open crown.
2006: Reaches the final of all four grand slams but wins only one, the French Open, with a straight-sets win over Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final.
At the Australian Open, becomes the first woman in the open era to retire from a grand slam final, citing stomach pains, handing the title to Amelie Mauresmo - who later beats her at Wimbledon.
2007: Withdraws from the Australian Open for personal reasons, later revealed to be the separation from her husband, losing her world number one status as a consequence.
Wins third straight French Open title, beating Ana Ivanovic 6-1 6-2.
Wins 10 of the 14 events she enters, posting a 63-4 record and becoming first player in tour history to win more than US$5 million in a single year.
Named WTA world player of the year.
Launches her tennis academy, Club Justine N1, in Limelette, Belgium.
2008: Wins her first tournament of the year in Sydney, but is beaten 6-4 6-0 by Maria Sharapova in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.
Wins one further tournament in Antwerp, but injuries and fatigue restrict her participation.
Loses 5-7 6-3 6-1 to Dinara Safina in the German Open, withdraws from her next scheduled appearance in Rome.
May 14 - Announces her retirement from professional tennis with immediate effect.