ARTHUR ASHE

TENNIS STAR

The first world-class black tennis star, Arthur Ashe distinguished himself not only on championship tournament courts, but also in supporting philanthropic causes. In 1992, he set up the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS.

Born July 10, 1943, in Richmond, Virginia, Arthur Ashe Jr. began playing tennis at the age of seven on segregated courts. After graduating from high school in St. Louis, he received a tennis scholarship to UCLA, where his instructors included Pancho Gonzalez. In 1963 he became the first black member of the American Davis Cup team, and his winning the first US Open tournament at Forest Hills, NY, in 1968 was called the most notable achievement by a black player in the history of tennis. He went on to win the Wimbledon tournament in England in 1975 and to be ranked No. 1 in the world.

Ashe strongly opposed apartheid in South Africa. He supported the United Negro College Fund, training programs for young athletes, the African American Athletic Association, and the American Heart Association. He retired from tennis in 1979 when he required open-heart surgery. He believed that a blood transfusion he received after a second heart operation in 1983 infected him with HIV. In 1988 he discovered that he had AIDS, which he revealed to the public in 1992. With characteristic practicality and courage, he set up his own AIDS foundation, which survived him. In fund-raising he received help from such top players as John McEnroe. In 1992, Sports Illustrated named him Sportsman of the Year. Ashe died February 6, 1993, of AIDS-related pneumonia.

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