Remembering The Greatness of Arthur Ashe 13
In 1968 Arthur Ashe won the U.S. Open and became the first African American to hold the number one ranking in men's tennis.
(On the 41st anniversary of him becoming the first African American to hold the number one ranking in men’s tennis, we remember and recognize the legacy of Arthur Ashe)
It is really a shame that so many people remember Arthur Ashe as “the black tennis player that died from AIDS.”
To say that the man was so much more would simply be an understatement.
Early Life
Most biographies of famous players always seem to start out with where the person was born, who their parents were, etc. That is in large part due to the significance of those facts in shaping a person’s life.
This article is no different.
Arthur Robert Ashe Jr. was born to Arthur Sr. and Mattie Ashe in 1943. The family lived in Richmond, Va., and Ashe’s father’s job as “Superintendent” provided him with a Caretaker’s Cottage in Brook Park, a “blacks only” area that coincidentally included tennis courts. Read the rest of this entry →