Arthur Ashe

Early life, education, and early tennis experience

Arthur Ashe was born in Richmond, Virginia, to Arthur Ashe Sr. (died 1989) and Mattie Cordell Cunningham Ashe on July 10, 1943. He had a brother Johnnie, who was five years younger. The brothers were born into the Blackwell Family of Virginia, a family that claimed direct descent from Amar, a West African woman who was enslaved and brought to America in 1735 aboard a ship called The Doddington. Ashe family members were enslaved by North Carolina Governor Samuel Ashe.

In March 1950, Ashe's mother, Mattie, died from complications related to a toxemic pregnancy (now known as pre-eclampsia) at the age of 27, when Ashe was 6. Ashe and his brother were raised by their father, who worked as a handyman and salaried caretaker/Special Policeman for Richmond's recreation department.

Ashe Sr. was a caring father and strict disciplinarian who encouraged Ashe to excel both in school and in sports, but forbade him to play American football, a popular game for many boys, due to his son's slight build: supposedly Ashe's childhood nicknames were "Skinny" and "Bones". The Ashes lived in the caretaker's cottage in the grounds of 18-acre Brookfield park, Richmond's largest blacks-only public playground, which had basketball courts, four tennis courts, a pool, and three baseball diamonds. Ashe started playing tennis at seven years of age and began practicing on the courts where his natural talent was spotted by Virginia Union University student and part-time Brookfield tennis instructor Ron Charity, who as the best black tennis player in Richmond at the time began to teach Ashe the basic strokes and encouraged him to enter local tournaments.

Ashe attended Maggie L. Walker High School in Richmond, Virginia, where he continued to practice tennis. Ron Charity brought him to the attention of Robert Walter Johnson, a physician, and the coach of Althea Gibson, who founded and funded the Junior Development Program of the American Tennis Association (ATA). Ashe was coached and mentored by Johnson at his tennis summer-camp home in Lynchburg, Virginia, from 1953 when Ashe was aged 10, until 1960. Johnson helped fine-tune Ashe's game and taught him the importance of racial socialization through sportsmanship, etiquette, and the composure that would later become an Ashe hallmark. He was told to return every ball that landed within two inches of a line and never to argue with an umpire's decision. In 1958, Ashe became the first African-American to play in the Maryland boys' championships. It was also his first integrated tennis competition.

Higher education and military service

Ashe was awarded a tennis scholarship to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1963. During his time at UCLA, he was coached by J. D. Morgan and practiced regularly with his sporting idol, Pancho Gonzales, who lived nearby and helped hone his game. Ashe was also a member of the ROTC, which required him to enter active military service after graduation in exchange for money for tuition. He was active in other organizations, later pledging the Upsilon chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity and becoming a member/brother of the fraternity.

After graduating with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Ashe joined the United States Army on August 4, 1966. He completed his basic training in Washington and was later commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Adjutant General Corps. He was assigned to the United States Military Academy at West Point where he worked as a data processor. During his time at West Point, Ashe headed the academy's tennis program. He was promoted to 1st Lieutenant on February 23, 1968, and was honorably discharged from the Army on February 22, 1969, as a 1st Lieutenant. As a member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served honorably during that period, he was awarded the National Defense Service Medal.

Tennis career

1960s

In 1961, Ashe won the Eastern Clay Court Championships defeating George Ball and Bob Barker in close five set matches in the semifinal and final.

In 1963, Ashe won the Pacific Southwest Championships in Los Angeles on concrete defeating Rafael Osuna and Whitney Reed in the final two rounds. The following season he won the 1964 Eastern Grass Court Championships at South Orange, New Jersey defeating Dennis Ralston, Gene Scott, and Clark Graebner in close matches.

In 1963, Ashe became the first black player ever selected for the United States Davis Cup team. In 1965, ranked the number 3 player in the United States, Ashe won both the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) singles title and the doubles title (with Ian Crookenden of New Zealand), helping UCLA win the NCAA team tennis championship.

In 1966 and 1967, Ashe reached the final of the Australian Championship but lost on both occasions to Roy Emerson. He won the 1967 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in Milwaukee defeating Marty Riessen in the final.

In 1968, Ashe won the United States Amateur Championships against Davis Cup teammate Bob Lutz. He served 26 aces in the US Open final to beat Tom Okker in five sets. "I couldn't handle his serve" admitted Okker afterwards. He became the first US Open champion of the open era, becoming the first black male to capture the title and the only player to have won both the amateur and open national championships in the same year. In order to maintain Davis Cup eligibility and have time away from army duty for important tournaments, Ashe was required to maintain his amateur status. Because of this, he could not accept the $14,000 first-prize money, which was instead given to runner-up Okker, while Ashe received just $20 daily expenses for his historic triumph. His ability to compete in the championship (and avoid the Vietnam War) arose from his brother Johnnie's decision to serve an additional tour in Vietnam in Arthur's place.

In December 1968, Ashe helped the U.S. team become Davis Cup champions after victory in the final in Adelaide against defending champions, Australia. His only loss in the 12 Davis Cup tournament singles matches he played that year, was in the last dead rubber game after the U.S. team had already clinched victory. The season closed with Ashe the winner of 10 of 22 tournaments with a 72–10 win-loss match record.

1970s

In January 1970, Ashe won his second Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open. With the competition somewhat depleted by the absence of some world-class National Tennis League (NTL) professional players barred by their league from entering because the financial guarantees were deemed too low, Ashe defeated Dick Crealy in straight sets in the final (which was played in a light drizzle which caused Ashe's glasses to mist up) to become the first non-Australian to win the title since 1959.

In March 1970, triggered by South Africa's refusal to grant Ashe a visa to play there, the country was expelled from the Davis Cup competition for its racial policy. In September 1970, Ashe helped the U.S. Davis cup team defeat West Germany in the challenge round to win their third consecutive Davis Cup. Ashe then turned professional, signing a five-year contract with Lamar Hunt's World Championship Tennis.

In March 1971, Ashe reached the final of the Australian Open again but lost in straight sets to Ken Rosewall. In June that year, Ashe won the French Open men's doubles with partner Marty Riessen.

In 1972, due to a dispute between the ILTF and the WCT, Ashe, as one of the 32 contracted WCT players, was barred from taking part in any ILTF Grand Prix tennis circuit tournaments from January to July. This ban meant Ashe was unable to play at the French Open and Wimbledon Grand Slam tournaments.

In September, Ashe reached the final of the US Open for the second time. After leading his opponent, Ilie Năstase by 2 sets to 1 and 4–2 in the fourth set, he eventually lost in five sets. The loss from such a winning position was the biggest disappointment of Ashe's professional tennis career. At the post-match award ceremony, irritated by some of Năstase's on-court antics during the game, Ashe praised Năstase as a tough opponent and 'colourful' player, then suggested, "... and when he brushes up on some of his court manners, he is going to be even better".

At this tournament, concerned that men's tennis professionals were not receiving winnings commensurate with the sport's growing popularity and to protect players from promoters and associations, Ashe supported the founding of the Association of Tennis Professionals. He went on to become its elected president in 1974.

Post-tennis career and activism

After his retirement, Ashe took on many roles, including writing for Time magazine and The Washington Post, commentating for ABC Sports and HBO from the early 1980s until a few months before his death, founding the National Junior Tennis League, and serving as captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team from 1981 to 1985. He was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985.

Ashe was an active civil rights supporter. In 1982, he joined with Harry Belafonte to form the group Artists and Athletes Against Apartheid, which called for a cultural boycott of South Africa. Ashe was arrested on January 11, 1985, for protesting outside the Embassy of South Africa, Washington, D.C., during an anti-apartheid rally. Six years later, he joined musician and producer Quincy Jones as part of a delegation of 31 prominent African Americans who visited South Africa in 1991 to observe political change in the country as it approached racial integration. He was arrested again on September 18, 1992, outside the White House for protesting with TransAfrica on the recent crackdown on Haitian refugees.

In 1988, Ashe published a three-volume book titled A Hard Road to Glory: A History of the African-American Athlete, after working with a team of researchers for nearly six years. Ashe stated that the book was more important than any tennis titles.

After Ashe publicly acknowledged that he had contracted HIV, he founded the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS, working to raise awareness about the virus and advocated teaching sex education and safe sex. He also fielded questions about his own diagnosis and attempted to clear up the misconception that only homosexual and bisexual men or IV drug users were at risk for contracting HIV. In a speech to the United Nations General Assembly on World AIDS Day, December 1, 1992, he addressed the growing need for AIDS awareness and increased research funding, saying: "We want to be able to look back and say to all concerned that we did what we had to do, when we had to do it, and with all the resources required."

Two months before his death, he founded the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health to help address issues of inadequate health care delivery and was named Sports Illustrated magazine's Sportsman of the Year. He also spent much of the last years of his life writing his memoir, Days of Grace, finishing the manuscript less than a week before his death.

Personal life

In October 1976, Ashe met photographer and graphic artist Jeanne Moutoussamy at a United Negro College Fund benefit. Moutoussamy, who is of Afro-Guadeloupean and African-American heritage, is the daughter of architect John Moutoussamy. On February 20, 1977, they were married in the Church Center for the United Nations in New York City in a ceremony officiated by Andrew Young, the United States ambassador to the United Nations.

In December 1986, Ashe and Moutoussamy adopted a daughter. They named their daughter Camera, after her mother's professional instrument.

Health

In July 1979, at the age of 36, Ashe suffered a heart attack while holding a tennis clinic in New York. In view of his high level of fitness as an athlete, his condition drew attention to the hereditary aspect of heart disease; his mother already had cardiovascular disease at the time of her death at age 27, and his father had suffered his first heart attack at age 55, and a second, at age 59, just a week before Ashe's own attack. Cardiac catheterization revealed one of Ashe's arteries was completely closed, another was 95 percent closed, and a third was closed 50 percent in two places. He underwent a quadruple bypass operation performed by Dr. John Hutchinson on December 13, 1979.

A few months after the operation, Ashe was on the verge of making his return to professional tennis. However, during a family trip in Cairo, Egypt, he developed chest pains while running. He stopped running and returned to see a physician accompanied by his close friend Douglas Stein. Stein urged him to return to New York City so he could be close to his cardiologist, his surgeon and top-class medical facilities. In 1983, he underwent a second round of heart surgery to correct the previous bypass surgery. After the surgery, Ashe became national campaign chairman for the American Heart Association.

In September 1988, Ashe was hospitalized after experiencing paralysis in his right arm. After undergoing exploratory brain surgery and a number of tests, doctors discovered that he had toxoplasmosis, a parasitic disease that is commonly found in people infected with HIV. A subsequent test later revealed that he was HIV-positive. Ashe and his doctors believed he contracted the virus from blood transfusions he received during his second heart surgery. He and his wife decided to keep his illness private for the sake of their daughter, who was then two years old.

In September 1992, Ashe suffered a mild heart attack.

In 1992, a friend of Ashe who worked for USA Today heard that he was ill and called him to confirm the story. Ashe decided to preempt USA Today's plans to publish the story about his illness and, on April 8, 1992, publicly announced he had contracted HIV. He blamed USA Today for forcing him to go public with the news but also stated that he was relieved that he no longer had to lie about his illness. After the announcement, hundreds of readers called or wrote letters to USA Today criticizing their choice to run the story about Ashe that forced him to publicize his illness.

Death

On February 6, 1993, Ashe died from AIDS-related pneumonia at New York Hospital at 3:13 p.m., at age 49. His funeral was held at the Arthur Ashe Athletic Center in Richmond, Virginia, on February 10. Governor Douglas Wilder, who was a friend of Ashe's, allowed his body to lie in state at the Governor's Mansion in Richmond. More than 5,000 people lined up to walk past the casket. Andrew Young, who had performed the service for Ashe's wedding in 1977, officiated at his funeral. Over 6,000 mourners attended. Ashe requested that he be buried alongside his mother in Woodland Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia.

On February 12, 1993, a memorial service for Ashe was held at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan.

Legacy

Ashe remains the only black man to win the singles title at Wimbledon, the US Open, or Australian Open. He is one of only two men of black African ancestry to win any Grand Slam singles title, the other being France's Yannick Noah, who won the French Open in 1983. He also led the United States to victory for three consecutive years (1968–70) in the Davis Cup.

In his 1979 autobiography, Jack Kramer, the long-time tennis promoter and a world no. 1 player himself in the 1940s, ranked Ashe as one of the 21 best players of all time.

Awards and honors

In 1974, Ashe released one the sport's first instructional long-playing records, "Learn Tennis with Arthur Ashe. For Beginners and Advanced Players", co-produced by Richard B. Thompson.

In 1975, Arthur Ashe received the inaugural ATP Player of the Year Award.

In 1975 he received the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year.

In 1977, he received the ATP Sportsmanship Award, voted for by other ATP-tour players.

In 1979, Ashe was awarded ATP Comeback Player of the Year and was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. Commenting on the induction, the Hall started: "Arthur Ashe was certainly a hero to people of all ages and races, and his legacy continues to touch the lives of many today. For Arthur Ashe, tennis was a means to an end. Although he had a lucrative tennis career, it was always more than personal glory and individual accolades. He used his status as an elite tennis player to speak out against the moral inequalities that existed both in and out of the tennis world. Ashe sincerely wanted to bring about change in the world. What made him stand out was that he became a world champion along the way."

In 1982, The Arthur Ashe Athletic Center, a 6,000-seat multi-purpose arena, was built in Richmond, Virginia. It hosts local sporting events and concerts.

Ashe was inducted into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Hall of Fame in 1983.

In 1985, he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

In 1986, Ashe won a Sports Emmy for co-writing the documentary A Hard Road to Glory, with Bryan Polivka.

In 1991, Ashe received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from The College of William and Mary in Virginia

Grand Slam finals

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

1The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.

Singles titles (76)

Note: Ashe won 28 titles before the Open Era

* 44 Open Era titles listed by the ATP website