Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr.
1943-1993
Ashe, Arthur Robert, Jr.
(b. July 10, 1943, Richmond, Va.; d. February 6, 1993, New York, N.Y.), American tennis player, number one ranked player in the world in 1975, vocal critic of racial intolerance, historian of African American sports.Ashe was born July 10, 1943, in Richmond, Virginia, to Mattie and Arthur Robert Ashe Sr. He began playing tennis at the age of ten under the guidance of Dr. Robert Walter Johnson, a prominent coach of African American youth from Charlottesville, Virginia. Under Johnson, Ashe won three American Tennis Association (ATA) Boy's championships, becoming the first African American junior to be ranked by the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA).
Between 1960 and 1963, Ashe won three ATA Men's Singles titles, became the first African American on the U.S. Junior Davis Cup team, and the first African American to win a USLTA national title in the South. His achievements earned him a full scholarship to the University of California at Los Angeles, where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1966. While in college, Ashe won the U.S. intercollegiate singles championship, leading UCLA to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) team championship.
The summer of 1967 was disappointing for Ashe. Not only did he lose both his singles matches in the Davis Cup, the U.S. team was defeated by Spain, Brazil, and Ecuador. He recovered from his disappointment, however, winning the 1968 U.S. Open in the first year that amateurs were allowed to compete. He turned professional in 1969.
Over his 11-year career Ashe played in 304 tournaments, winning 51, including the 1970 Australian Open and Wimbledon in 1975. He was the number one ranked player in the world in 1975. Although a life-threatening heart condition forced him to retire in 1980, Ashe continued to serve as the non-playing captain of that year's U.S. Davis Cup team. In 1985 he became the second African American inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. The first was
Althea Gibson in 1971.After his career in tennis, Ashe became an eloquent spokesperson against racial intolerance. He was a critic of
South Africa's racist system of apartheid and in the United States he created tennis programs to benefit inner-city youth. He wrote a three-volume history of the African American athlete entitled A Hard Road To Glory (1988).In 1992 Ashe announced that he had contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from a blood transfusion during one of his two heart bypass operations. After his announcement, he became an active leader in the fight to increase funding and awareness of
acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Suffering complications from AIDS, Ashe died in New York on February 6, 1993.Contributed
By:
Alonford James Robinson, Jr.