Biography for arthur ashe

Outside of competition, Ashe wrote a three-volume history of Black athletes, performed on-air commentary for ABC Sports, and served as captain of the U. Davis Cup team, which won titles in and He served as chairman of the National Heart Association inwas arrested at a protest against apartheid protest in Washington, D. Inhe was diagnosed with HIV but initially kept his medical condition private.

Although he began work on a memoir about his struggle with the disease, Days of Graceit would be published posthumously. Ashe died on February 6, His body lay in honor in the capitol building in Richmond, the first person so honored sincewhen Confederate general Thomas J. About 6, people attended his funeral. He was later buried at Woodland Cemetery in Richmond.

Arthur Ashe Statue in Richmond Still, the legacy of Arthur Ashe was not complete. LeeJefferson Davisand Jackson. Inthe city voted to erect a sixth—to Ashe. The twelve-foot statue on a forty-four-ton stone column depicts Ashe facing west, surrounded by children, holding a tennis racket in one hand and carrying biographies for arthur ashe in the other.

Open, was named Arthur Ashe Stadium in Arthur Ashe Boulevard was formally dedicated on June 22, Encyclopedia Virginia Grady Ave. Virginia Humanities acknowledges the Monacan Nationthe original people of the land and waters of our home in Charlottesville, Virginia. We invite you to learn more about Indians in Virginia in our Encyclopedia Virginia.

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Donald Glover. Winning the U. Winning Wimbledon; Becoming No. Political Activism Ashe didn't relish his status as the sole Black star in a game dominated by white players, but he didn't run away from it, either. Health Problems and AIDS Diagnosis Ashe, who retired from competition inwas plagued with health issues over the last 14 years of his life.

Legacy In addition to his pioneering tennis career, Ashe is remembered as an inspirational figure. Open, and the first African American man to be ranked No. Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome. One important key to success is self-confidence. My father He'd always been interested in sports but, with arms and legs "thin as soda straws," as he described himself in his autobiography, Advantage Ashe, he was too light for football and too slow for track.

He began to hit tennis balls. Then, inabout a year after he'd first picked up a tennis racquet, his mother, Mattie Cordell Cunningham Ashe, died unexpectedly. Mattie Ashe had gone to the hospital for a minor surgery but succumbed to toxemia, a poisoning of the blood. The seven-year-old Ashe was devastated and refused to attend her burial.

In order to cope, he grew somewhat emotionally distant and poured his energy into his schoolwork and tennis, and excelled at both. By channeling his grief into his tennis game, Ashe had found a way to make adversity work in his favor. He did the same with his schoolwork. Attending a segregated elementary school in Richmond, he and his classmates were always taught they had to work harder than white children in order to succeed.

Okay, this may not be the best-equipped school; that just means you're going to have to be a little bit better prepared than white kids and ready to seize any opportunity that comes your way. Charity began to coach Ashe, and encouraged him to enter his first tournament, at the Brook Field courts, which he lost to a boy three years his elder.

But Ashe was not at all discouraged. By the time he was ten, Ashe was competing against — and defeating — older, stronger boys, but the most important lesson he learned from Charity wasn't about shot-making; it was about sportsmanship. Charity had taught the young phenomenon not to gloat, as did his next instructor, Dr. Walter Johnson. Johnson was a physician in Lynchburg, Virginia, who in his spare time coached African-American tennis players during summers at his home.

From the summer of to the summer ofAshe worked with Dr. Johnson, who not only fine-tuned Ashe's game but also his conduct, the etiquette and composure that would become an Ashe hallmark. It was still prior to the civil-rights movement in America, and whenever black players were allowed to compete against whites, they were too aware that they had to be on their best behavior on the court.

Ashe, like Johnson's other students, was schooled in the courteous biography for arthur ashe of defeat and the humble pride of victory. In andAshe took the U. Junior Indoor singles title, which got him noticed by a Missouri coach, Richard Hudlin, a friend of Johnson's. It soon became apparent that if Ashe was to pursue tennis, he'd have to leave Richmond, a raciallysegregated city that precluded Ashe from playing whites.

With winter approaching and the city's indoor courts closed to blacks, Ashe took Hudlin up on his suggestion that he spend his senior year in St. Once there, Ashe learned to leave his solid baseline game and became one of the original serve-and-volley players. He graduated from Sumner High School with the highest grade point average. But what gave him the greatest happiness was the realization of Dr.

Though it had denied him access to competition several times on account of his race, the USLTA listed Ashe as the fifth-ranked junior player in the country and a Junior Davis Cup team member. Numerous universities offered the young athlete and scholar a place in their freshman class. Ashe chose UCLA, which boasted one of the country's best collegiate tennis programs, and intended to study architecture or engineering.

However, Ashe's coach urged him to major in business administration so he could better balance his studies, tennis practice and travel, ROTC, and the hours of work his scholarship required he give to the college. The strategy paid off. Two years and numerous tournaments later, Ashe was ranked sixth. Under the tutelage of coach J. Morgan, who'd scouted Ashe, and Pancho GonzalezAshe honed his aggressive court style, with a powerful backhand and speed-of-light serve.

This was the ammunition that made him such a success on the faster grass and hard court surfaces.

Biography for arthur ashe: Arthur Ashe became the first

Davis Cup team, won the Johnston Award for his contribution to the sport, and was the country's number-one collegiate competitor. It is as much a tribute to Richmond and the state of Virginia as it is to me. Ashe was inducted into the army inthe year he graduated from UCLA. During the two years Ashe served in the army, first as deputy brigade commander in Fort Lewis, Washington, and then as a second lieutenant, his tennis career stalled somewhat.

After boot camp, he was offered the position of assistant tennis coach at the United States Military Academy at West PointNew Yorkwhich he accepted, but it still didn't leave him much time to develop his game. He did reach the U. Indoor Championship finals inwon the U. Clay Court Championship the following year, and at one point had a singles Davis Cup record, but he missed a number of major tournaments and lost in the third round in straight sets to Australian John Newcombe at the U.

Professional tennis players who'd experienced Ashe's topspin backhand or powerhouse serve knew he was a competitor with the makings of a champion. Though still an amateur, he'd won numerous tournaments against the sport's best players, and his Davis Cup team performance was admirable. But he hadn't taken a single Grand Slam event. No one knew better than Ashe himself that in his college years behind him, his two years of army service complete-he would have to put everything he had into tennis if he wanted to be successful as a professional.

Upon leaving the military Ashe was in excellent physical condition, and he was mentally prepared to be a winner. That summer he played well at Wimbledon, though he fell to Rod Laver in the semi-finals. But he was victorious in both the U. Nationals men's singles title and the first U. Open, a feat no man had ever accomplished. In addition, his Davis Cup team took the title from the Australians, a win Ashe cherished above all others.

He once said he never lost sleep over any tournament other than the Davis Cup. To Ashe, there was an enormous difference between losing as an individual and losing as a representative of the United States. The first black man to win a Grand Slam title and now the top-ranked player in America, Arthur Ashe had achieved true celebrity status. Photographs of him appeared on magazine covers, his name appeared on tennis-related products, major corporations signed him on as spokesman, and he offered tennis clinics for American Express and Coca-Cola.

He was appointed tennis director at the Doral Resort and Country Club in MiamiFloridaand even made the tabloid gossip pages when he dated fashion models and stars such as singer Diana Ross. Ashe put his hard-won fame to use. He turned professional in and immediately began to work to protect players' rights and interests. With his colleagues he created the International Tennis Players Association, acting first as treasurer and later as the union's vice-president.

He repeatedly spoke out against the apartheid policies of the South African government and succeeded in having South Africa expelled from Davis Cup competition. With his stature, Ashe's public outcry garnered world attention to the oppressive rule of apartheid, and in Ashe was selected to act as goodwill ambassador to Africa. The U. Department of State sent him to KenyaNigeriaTanzaniaand Ugandawhere he met with government leaders, students, and diplomats.

The following year, as a member of a delegation of tennis players, Ashe visited CameroonGabonSenegaland Cote d'Ivoire. It was at a tennis club in Cameroon where Ashe noticed the young, talented Yannick Noahwho he arranged to have sent to France for tutelage under the care of the French Tennis Federation. Over the course of the next few years, Ashe's game seemed to stagnate.

A new generation of competitors, such as Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connorswere testing his dynamic serve-and-volley game with power, precision, and an almost appalling sense of confidence. ByAshe's "biography for arthur ashe" had sunk to fifth place. Some blamed his biography for arthur ashe activism for his deteriorating game, others his age he was Ashe steeled himself, determined to win the World Champion Tennis title that spring in DallasTexas.

He did. But an even bigger victory was in sight. When Arthur Ashe stepped onto the grass at Wimbledon and bowed to the Royal Box, the last thing on his. The date was July 5,and Ashe was playing for the men's singles title. The challenge would require his complete concentration. His opponent was one of the top-seeded players, twenty-two-year-old fellow American Jimmy Connors.

The two had battled before and in all three of their matches, Ashe had been the loser. Sports fans on both sides of the Atlantic expected the brash and self-taught Connors to "slaughter" Ashe, as Ashe noted in his memoir Days of Grace. In addition, only days before Wimbledon, Connors had filed a lawsuit against Ashe for libel. Ashe was not intimidated.

He'd stood by his principles, having accused Connors of playing matches for big purses while refusing to join the United States squad for the international Davis Cup competition, where players are paid in the currency of patriotic honor, not hard cash. Despite the lawsuit, Ashe retained his cool and even demeanor. Ashe won Wimbledon by finessing the hard-hitting Connors with a brilliantly strategic game of defensive tennis.

He played conservatively, hitting balls deep then rushing the net, keeping Connors off balance. Also, Ashe had decided that rather than try to outpower the southpaw, he'd hit the ball softly, breaking Connors' rhythm. It would also force Connors to generate his own power, rather than simply redirect the ball using Ashe's velocity.

Biography for arthur ashe: Arthur Robert Ashe Jr.

Ashe's plan for the historic match would later help some of the decade's best players — Bjorn BorgIvan Lendland John McEnroe — undercut Connors' phenomenal, dominating power game. With a,victory at Wimbledon, he not only obtained the number-one ranking in the world that year but saw the culmination of a lifetime of struggle. By the day's end, Ashe had a date with the photographer, the stunning Jeanne Marie Moutoussamy.

Ambassador to the United Nations. Ashe's biography for arthur ashe surgery had been successful, but another injury followed, and, compounded with recurrent eye inflammations, he decided to lay low for the year. Though he took the Australian Open doubles title, with his partner Tony Roche, he was forced to skip Wimbledon and the U.

Open in This caused his ranking to fall, which in turn led the sportswear company Catalina to drop Ashe as a key endorser. Ashe was forced to come up with other means of providing an income. Ashe's academic background in business and his real-life experience with some of the largest corporations in America made him biography for arthur ashe acting as a consultant and entrepreneur.

During the course of his life, he had a business relationship with Head USA, a manufacturer of sports gear that kept Ashe on board even though it lost accounts in the South due to Ashe's race. Doral Resort and Country Club maintained its association with Ashe, which had special meaning for Ashe since the nearby Admiral Hotel refused to accommodate him during a tournament in Miami, yet housed all the other junior players, who were white.

In addition, Ashe became a columnist with Tennis magazine and the Washington Post, and was a consultant with clothing manufacturer Le Coq Sportif. Ashe also acted as consultant with the Aetna Life and Casualty Company, where he had been in charge of minority recruitment, and would later be honored by the offer of a seat on their board of directors.

By Ashe still wasn't ready to give up tennis. He played thirteen tournaments but reached the finals in only two. Then, on July 30, a tremendous pain in his chest woke the athlete from a sound sleep. Within an hour, the pain would recur twice. Each time it subsided he went back to sleep. The next day, Ashe gave two tennis clinics in New York and while signing autographs, was struck again.

Arthur Ashe had had a heart attack. In December he underwent a quadruple bypass surgery. He would never play tennis again. But Ashe was optimistic and tried to get back into competition shape. It was not to be. On April 16,Ashe announced his retirement from competitive tennis. Yet he remained actively involved in the sport. That year he was made captain of the U.

He worked as a sports commentator for ABC and HBO television, gave innumerable clinics to inner city children, wrote articles and books on the sport, made a tennis video, and in was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island. InAshe underwent a second bypass operation. Weak from the procedure, he was given a blood transfusion to try to bolster his strength and speed his recovery.

InAshe needed an operation on his brain, and tests following that surgery were positive for the virus that causes AIDS. Doctors concluded that Ashe had contracted HIV from the transfusion he was given following his second heart surgery. At the time the news was a death sentence. However, this did not stop Ashe from struggling for social justice.

In he was arrested outside the South African embassy in Washington, DC, while protesting against the country's institutionalized racism. He talked it over with his wife and decided to scoop the paper. In a public press conference, Ashe not only admitted that he had AIDS but kicked off his campaign to educate the public about the disease and set up a foundation to defeat the disease.

He spoke out against discrimination against homosexuals in general and AIDS sufferers for the remainder of his life. But he never asked for pity. When a well-meaning reporter for People magazine suggested that having AIDS must be the greatest burden Ashe had ever had to bear, he corrected her. Even now it continues to feel like an extra weight tied around me.

Ashe completed his final memoir, Days of Grace, just two days before he died. The book concludes with an open letter to his daughter, Camera, then only six years old she was born December 21,whom he wrote was a "daily affirmation of the power of life. Arthur Ashe's legacy is manifold. Rarely have sports celebrities taken on social issues with such passion and commitment as did Ashe.

He broke color barriers both in his own country and abroad, and fought tirelessly for social justice, founding the African American Athletic Association to mentor student athletes and helping preserve the history of African-American athletes with his contributions to the A Hard Road to Glory. Inwhen President Nelson Mandela, freed from his South African jail after twenty-seven years, was asked which American he'd most like to meet, his immediate response was "Arthur Ashe.

Yannick Simon Camille Noah was born on May 18,in Sedan, France, and at the age of three he moved with his family to his father's native country of Cameroon. Inwhile attending a tennis clinic at a local club, Noah was given the chance to play with Ashe, who was making his second goodwill tour of Africa. February 29, Retrieved October 6, Allentown Morning Call.

March 31, April 22, Waterloo The Courier. June 17, Springfield Leader and Press. July 29, The Fresno Bee. Harlington Valley Morning Star. December 16, February 24, Oakland Tribune. April 7, The Des Moines Register. February 16, March 30, Hartford Courant. April 6, Tampa Bay Times. April 13, Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune. May 4, Dayton Daily News.

Des Moines Register. June 14, Spokane Spokesman-Review. September 22, October 12, The Post Crescent. June 15, Bibliography [ edit ]. Further reading [ edit ]. External links [ edit ]. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Arthur Ashe. Wikiquote has quotations related to Arthur Ashe.

Biography for arthur ashe: On July 10, Arthur Robert Ashe

Muhammad Ali. Articles and topics related to Arthur Ashe. Arthur Ashe in the Grand Slam tournaments. Australian Open men's singles champions. Wimbledon men's singles champions.

Biography for arthur ashe: Arthur Robert Ashe Jr.

US Open men's singles champions. Norris Williams : Bill Johnston : R. Australian Open men's doubles champions. French Open men's doubles champions. Havet J. Arthur Ashe Achievements. WCT year end championship winners singles. Year-end championships men's doubles champions. Falkenburg USC S. Curtis Rice F. Fisher Washington H. Stewart USC C.

Ditzler California R. Reyes USC A. Contreras USC C. Holmberg Tulane A. Atkinson USC C. Holmberg Tulane L. Ralston USC D. Bond USC I. Lutz USC S. Lutz USC J. Lara USC P. Tanner Stanford A. Delaney Stanford J. Delaney Stanford B. Manson USC P. Lewis USC J. Harmon Tennessee D. Richter TCU P. Serret Arkansas A. Malmqvist Georgia K. Jones Pepperdine K.

Pawsat USC R. Melville USC P. Black USC D. Lucena California M. O'Brien Stanford D. Merklein Florida L. Simmons MSU M. Hamadeh Ole Miss J. Wolters Stanford C. Oliver Illinois M. Parrott Georgia A. Kovacs Auburn R. Wilson Illinois S. Corkery Stanford J. Ruiz Georgia K. Rowe Illinois M. Shabaz Virginia D. Shabaz Virginia J. Rola Ohio State J. Styslinger Virginia M.

Reese Tennessee S. Glasspool Texas M. Papa Oklahoma M. Walton Tennessee R. Harper Texas A. Trotter Ohio State R. Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year. Arthur Ashe Courage Award winners. Members of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.