Arthur Ashe

Arthur Ashe Tennis Paper

I wrote this paper on Arthur Ashe because I wanted to learn something about the history of tennis and how it has evolved over the years. I looked up tennis history online and found the best way to do this was by writing a paper concerning the life, career, and impact that one man, Arthur Ashe, has had on tennis.

Ashe was a skinny African American kid who loved reading books and listening to music. He grew up in Richmond, Virginia with his parents. As a young boy, only six years old, his mother passed away. He used his mother's memory as his inspiration in life. Arthur found a unique excitement for playing tennis. However, due to segregation, he was excluded from playing at any of the local tennis clubs and camps. So he began playing in a hometown park where his skills were noticed by his father and tennis coach Ronald Charity who welcomed Ashe to spend the summer at the home of Dr. Walter Johnson, the coach of Althea Gibson, the first black player ever to win a Grand Slam title. Ashe accepted his offer and not too long after, Johnson became Ashe's mentor. Dr. Johnson gave Arthur a foundation that carried him through an outstanding high school tennis career that earned him a tennis scholarship at UCLA. It was there that he earned recognition for his tennis abilities on a national level, winning an individual and team NCAA championship. He was also growing as a person as well, graduating with a BA in Business Administration.

As a tennis player, Arthur Ashe was one of the most prominent players of all time. Upon graduation from UCLA, Ashe was selected to represent the United States in the Davis Cup. He was the first African American to ever be chosen to play on the US team (< http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com >). Six years later in 1968, still playing as an amateur, Ashe won the US Open, becoming the first black man to win a Grand Slam title and to be ranked at number one by the USLTA, (now USTA). He would go on to win the Australian Open in 1970 and, in one of the most memorable upsets in tennis, to defeat Jimmy Connors in the 1975 Wimbledon final (< http://tennis.about.com >). Over his career he had over 800 victories and won 51 singles and doubles titles. His intelligence, sportsmanship, and integrity also received recognition from the tennis world as he won the 1964 Johnston Award, was elected ATP president in 1974 and Davis Cup captain in 1980, and was named Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year in 1992 (< http://tennis.about.com >). He was inducted into the International Hall of Fame and has a statue of himself erected in Richmond's Monument Avenue.

While taking part in a tennis clinic in 1979, Ashe suffered a heart attack and had to undergo surgery. A few months after recovering from surgery, he felt chest pains again while competing and decides it's time to retire. After continuing heart