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Althea Gibson Breaking the Tennis Color Barrier — The Real Story

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With February being Black History Month, the tennis world looks back at some of the greatest and most influential African-American players of all time. While Arthur Ashe receives the bulk of the attention and notoriety, it was actually Althea Gibson who broke the color barrier in major tournament tennis at the U.S. Championships (the modern day US Open) in 1950.

Sidney Wood, the Wimbledon men’s singles champion in 1931 and one of the original “renaissance men” in the sport tells the interesting tale of how Gibson was allowed to play in the 1950 U.S. Championships at Forest Hills by the U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) in this book excerpt from his recently released posthumously released memoir: THE WIMBLEDON FINAL THAT NEVER WAS…AND OTHER TENNIS TALES FROM A BYGONE ERA ($14.95, New Chapter Press, www.NewChapterMedia.com, available HERE on BarnesAndNoble.com . The book chapter “The Case of Althea Gibson” from the book is excerpted below.

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When Althea Gibson had become a championship- mettle competitor in 1950, five all-white top 10 tennis players: Frank Shields, Don McNeill, Cliff Sutter, Gil Hall and I, whom I’d finally “persuaded” the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association to appoint to its 25-member executive committee, could not believe their ears on hearing an almost whispered motion proposed to bar Althea from the upcoming U.S. Nationals at Forest Hills and prevent her from becoming the first black player to compete at the highest level of American tennis.

There had been no prior discussion of any such idea, at least not for us to know of, but at the far end of the long luncheon table at the Vanderbilt Hotel (then the official USLTA hostelry) there had been a star chamber get-together sustained by the customary double Manhattan aperitifs, and although it seems inconceivable that any presumably mature Association fathers could be hatching this dumb plot, there was no question as to their intent. I am constrained to add that Russell Kingman, the USLTA president, was abroad at the time, and I can’t dismiss the suspicion that the meeting was timed to precede his return and certain veto. Russell was one of the rare breed of truly altruistic sports executives, also a booster for my own and other progressive help-the-game ideas.

Up to that time, none of our five guys had reason to qualify as minority activists, but we admired as well as liked Althea, and our sense of fair play was rudely affronted. In honesty, perhaps it was not entirely the bald inequity of the case, but righteous indignation at being railroaded by the badge-wearer fraternity that caused me to jump up and ask how they could be unaware of the recently enacted State anti-bias law – and to warn them that they could expect to read their names in every sports-page headline. Their absurdly naïve legal stance was that being a member of a USLTA sectional association was a prerequisite to competing in the Nationals! As has been forever typical of ladder-rung advances in sports officialdom, any opinions of mere athletes are rarely heeded. This could explain why I have seldom been the ruling party’s favorite player.

That September from the northwest sidewall of the stadium at Forest Hills, Shields, McNeill, Hall and I had one eye on the stadium match and the other on Althea playing Louise Brough on the adjoining grandstand court. While few players like to see the No. 2 seed lose, and especially Louise, we were stirred  when Althea came within two points of a huge upset.

Gibson not only broke the color barrier at the U.S. Championships that year, but went on, of course, to win two women’s singles titles at Forest Hills as well as two at Wimbledon and another in France at Roland Garros. She could afford a laugh at the outrageous act of bigotry that had been considered. But as novelist James Baldwin cried out, “To be a Negro in this country and constantly be made aware of it is to be in a rage most of your life.

In 1990, 32 years after her second victory at Wimbledon and the U.S. Nationals, I found myself sitting next to her in the Royal Box at Wimbledon watching the final. Life goes on.

Withdraw from Wimbledon to rest for Davis Cup?

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With Rafael Nadal withdrawing from next week’s USA vs. Spain Davis Cup quarterfinal in Austin, Texas to rest following Wimbledon, it is interesting to note that 80 years ago this week, a player withdrew from Wimbledon – the final no less – to rest up for Davis Cup.

Rafael Nadal

As documented in the new posthumously-published memoir of Sidney Wood called THE WIMBLEDON FINAL THAT NEVER WAS, Frank Shields, the grandfather of actress and model Brooke Shields, withdrew from the 1931 Wimbledon men’s singles final against Wood, his best friend, roommate, doubles partner and U.S. Davis Cup teammate. Shields was forced to withdraw from the final – on orders from the U.S. Tennis Association – to rest his knee that he injured in closing out his semifinal win over Jean Borotra so that he would be fit for the U.S. Davis Cup match with Great Britain shortly after Wimbledon.

Shields closed out one of the most dramatic matches ever played on Centre Court at Wimbledon on July 1, 1931, after badly injuring his knee late in the fourth set. Playing virtually on one leg, he incredibly hit five unreturnable serves, leading two sets to one and serving at 4-3, 40-30 in the fourth set, to advance into the final.

On July 3, 1931 – the day before the scheduled men’s singles final – the Wimbledon walk-over was announced. Wrote Wood in THE WIMBLEDON FINAL THAT NEVER WAS, “Frank wanted to play, and could have played. But the U.S. Davis Cup committee wouldn’t let him. Can you imagine that happening today, expecting a guy to give up a shot at the Wimbledon title just to be ready for a Davis Cup match? But we were amateurs then, and the USTA had the power of life and death over us. Frank and I thought it was a terrible affront to Wimbledon to leave them without a men’s final, but that’s the way it was.”

In THE WIMBLEDON FINAL THAT NEVER WAS, Wood then details the “Private Understanding Playoff” between he and Shields and how the Wimbledon trophy was locked in a safe deposit box for three years until the two would play their next grass-court tournament final.

Wrote Wood, “It wasn’t Frank’s fault that he had to default. He didn’t really want to default. I know that obviously I wanted to play, at the same time I figured well, if Frank were to default, I’m the Wimbledon Champion and we’ll play it off some other time, which is exactly what we did..”

Wood, who passed away in 2009 at the age of 97, can be called the greatest story teller tennis ever had, as he also relates in the book fascinating anecdotes and stories that involve some of greatest titans of tennis and such legendary Hollywood personalities as Grace Kelly, Errol Flynn, Charlie Chaplin, Groucho Marx, Gary Cooper among others. Wood also critiques all the best players and all the best strokes for every top player through the years – from Bill Tilden, Rene Lacoste and Don Budge all the way to the modern era of the game.

THE WIMBLEDON FINAL THAT NEVER WAS ($15.95, New Chapter Press, is available here on Amazon.com.

Wood was born on November 1, 1911 in Black Rock, Conn., and was a long-time resident of New York, N.Y., Southampton, N.Y., and Palm Beach, Fla. When he won the Wimbledon title in 1931 at age 19, he was the youngest man to win the singles title at the All England Club – 17-year-old Boris Becker breaking his record in 1985. He still holds the record of being the youngest player to compete at Wimbledon at age 15 in 1927. He was a singles finalist at the 1935 U.S. Championships and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1964.

David Wood is the youngest son of Sidney Wood and served as a contributor to the book.

Roger Federer’s Wimbledon epic

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It can easily be called the greatest Wimbledon final ever. In 2009, Roger Federer won his sixth Wimbledon men’s singles title – and his record-breaking 16th major singles title – with an epic five-set victory over Andy Roddick. Rene Stauffer, author of the Federer biography ROGER FEDERER: QUEST FOR PERFECTION ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.RogerFedererBook.com) take readers back to that dramatic Sunday afternoon in this exclusive book excerpt.

Roger Federer vs Andy Roddick

Two weeks later when Nadal was forced to withdraw from defending his Wimbledon title due to tendonitis in both knees, Federer was positioned as the overwhelming favorite to win the title. Losing only one set, Federer moved into the final where he faced his old adversary Andy Roddick, who defeated Andy Murray in the semifinals to the disappointment of the British hosts. Federer was not only playing against the American, the man whom he beat in the Wimbledon finals in 2004 and 2005, but once again against tennis history.

Legends such as Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg were in attendance at Centre Court, which for the first time featured a retractable roof. The surprising attendee, however, was Sampras, who flew to London from California with his wife just to watch the final. Sampras had said he would be there on the day that Federer breaks his record and he kept his word.

Federer was tense at the start of the match, missing his typical sovereignty and characteristic lightness for Wimbledon. The final quickly turned into a battle of serves. In a spat of bad luck, Federer was broken by Roddick late in the first set and surrendered the first stanza 7-5. Federer was then lucky to escape from being down two-sets-to-love when Roddick took a 6-2 lead in the second-set tie-breaker, four straight set points. But Roddick missed a seemingly easy backhand volley at 6-5 as Federer seized the second set tie-breaker 8-6, winning six straight points.

The two players each held serve six times to force another tie-breaker in the third set, Federer edging ahead two-sets-to-one with the 7-5 tie-break victory. As the match dragged on, Federer could not defend the overpowering Roddick serve. The American secured another service break in the fourth game in the fourth set and forced the match into a fifth-set. Federer and Roddick continued to exchange dominant service games and the fifth set turned epic. The score went to 5-5, then 6-6, then 7-7, and 8-8. At 8-8, Roddick had a major opportunity to break the Federer serve at 15-40, but the Swiss responded with two big serves.

It was not until the 30th game of the final set when the breakthrough occurred. With Federer ahead 15-14, Roddick misplayed a forehand on the second deuce point, giving Federer his first match point. It is all Federer needed to convert as Roddick mishit a forehand beyond the baseline to secure his first service break of the match, and win his record-breaking 15th major singles title.

After 4 hours and 16 minutes, including a 95-minute fifth set, the final score read Federer as the champion by 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 margin. The 77 games marked the longest major final in history.

“I am happy that I was able the break the Grand Slam record. Wimbledon is the tournament that always meant the most to me,” said Federer, who set a personal record with 50 aces in the final. “I felt different after the finals than at most Grand Slam tournaments. I didn’t shed a tear, didn’t get emotional like in Paris, Melbourne and a year ago in Wimbledon. At the end I was totally exhausted and tired because of the length and the importance of the match.”

With his sixth Wimbledon title, Federer also replaced Nadal in the top spot in the ATP rankings. His triumph was complete. He reached his dreams. He set new standards in his sport and his career was closer to perfection than ever before. While debating if he is the best player on earth, he provided overwhelming proof and most people gave him the nod as the greatest ever, including Sampras himself.

“I have to give it to him,” Sampras said after the 2009 Wimbledon final. “The critics say Laver, and Nadal has beaten him a few times at majors. He’s won all the majors, he’s won 15 now. He’s going to win a few more here. So in my book, he is.”

“He’s a stud,” Sampras added. “He’s only 27. He’ll contend here for many years, and the US Open, and all the majors. If he just keeps it going and stays healthy, he could go to 18, 19, potentially. The guy, he’s a legend. Now he’s an icon.”

Federer himself followed the debate of the “Greatest of All-Time” calmly and with reserve. “I enjoy it and I am proud when people write positive about me,” he said in the summer of 2009. “Fifteen major victories, winning all four major titles, reaching the semifinals of 20 Grand Slams in a row and being the number one player for 237 weeks in a row. Now I am certainly one of the best. But I don’t say: I am the best of all times. I have too much respect for tennis history. Let me finish my career first. Then we can compare it with other ones. Maybe I will be still playing in ten years.”

HOW DO YOU PLAY A LEFTY?

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At the 2010 French Open, the man to beat is clearly Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard will be seeking his fifth title at Roland Garros and is the clear cut favorite after once again going undefeated in the lead-up European clay court season.

Beating a left-handed player like Nadal takes a certain strategy. How to beat a lefty was a question that also confronted Czech Hall of Famer Jan Kodes, on his way to winning the Wimbledon men’s singles title in 1973. In the semifinals in the year of the Wimbledon boycott, Kodes met Roger Taylor, the British left-hander. In his new book JAN KODES: A Journey to Glory from Behind the Iron Curtain ($49.95, New Chapter Press, www.NewChapterMedia.com) Kodes describes how he played a lefty in this book excerpt below.

Jaroslav Drobny was a left-hander who gained much experience while traveling around various tennis facilities of the world. It was no wonder that Jan Kodes approached him before his Wimbledon semifinal match against Taylor with a question: “Jaroslav, tell me, what bothered you the most when you faced a right-hander: when he served toward forehand into your body, or into the backhand out and away to the side? He hits a low sliced crosscourt backhand to my forehand volley, and that bothers me. I have no idea where he would hit a forehand shot.”

“Jan, remember one thing above all: you must hold a left-hander nice and tight, meaning that you keep on feeding the shots into his backhand because his reach is limited on that side. In order to make it look as casual as possible make sure that as soon as you know that you can put the ball away hit it into his forehand. That way he’ll feel that you are hitting indiscriminately into both sides” said Drobny. “In the toughest moments and situations, when you are pressed only to rally, you must always target the backhand side! It is less likely that he’ll hit a passing shot from that side. Lefthanders generally pass from a running forehand and they have a hard time to do the same from their backhand.”

This was yet another time when his advice was very helpful. There was just one more thing I needed. When somebody gives you advice you are still dealing only on the theoretical level. You must be able to turn it into practice – you must remember to do so in a match!

I remembered Jaroslav during the match with Taylor about three times. During a match, one cannot concentrate only on one thing but rather it is necessary to evaluate and find weapons for all kinds of situations. However, when a match reached an important point, I often bounced the ball several times before serving it and resolved: If he returns into my forehand, I’ll follow Jaroslav’s instructions. If he returns a low ball, I’ll volley it crosscourt. I approached the net determined to carry out that decision without altering it! It did not matter how the opponent moved or did not move; I played what I had decided and waited for the reaction.

As soon as one decides to change the strategy while already on the run, invariably you botch it! Such are the laws of the game of tennis that apply two-fold on grass surface. You don’t reach advantage on your opponent’s serve, perhaps twice in a set. You either break your opponent’s serve or you don’t but you won’t have another chance to do so any time soon.

On clay you will, on grass you won’t. It is in these very moments that a player must play with utmost concentration and according to those unwritten tennis rules. Even if I hit the ball out it does not bother me that much since I followed my plan; I get really unhappy if I botch a ball because I did not stick to my principles.

I had about five rackets with me in Wimbledon but I wanted to use only two of them during the finals. The leather grip was already thumbed and my fingers slid in comfortably, the string tension was just right, one slightly softer. However, I ran into a problem after the morning semi-finals. Two strings in one of the rackets started to roll. That posed a dilemma: should I ask to have it re-strung? Or should I just let it be? My rackets had been strung specifically for me in Prague and I was used to them. Naturally, they strung rackets in Wimbledon too, but each machine leaves a different touch, one is set to kilograms, the other to pounds and the pound-setting did not suit me well.

I approached Jaroslav Drobny and asked him to look at my racket. He took off his glasses studied the strings for a while and then he said: “Play with it! Take the risk; I don’t think it will break. On clay it would not survive a set because clay is coarse but it should last through a match on grass.”

And it lasted through the entire final match! The string burst only later, about half-an-hour into a mixed-doubles match on court number two where Martina Navratilova and I lost the quarter-final match to the future champions Davidson – King 3:6, 0:6.

BJORN BORG TO PLAY FIRST TENNIS MATCH IN UNITED STATES IN 10 YEARS ON THURSDAY

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NEW YORK, N.Y. – – Bjorn Borg, the iconic Swedish tennis legend who won five straight Wimbledon men’s singles titles from 1976 to 1980, will play his first tennis match in the United States in 10 years Thursday as he kicks off play at the $150,000 Staples Champions Cup, the fifth-year Champions Series tennis event at the Agganis Arena in Boston.

Borg will face fellow Swede Mikael Pernfors at 7 pm on Thursday, April 29 to begin the opening session of the four-day event. The elite, eight-player, single knock-out tournament also features John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Mats Wilander, Mark Philippoussis, Wayne Ferreira and Jimmy Arias. The tournament has been played in Boston since 2006 and is title-sponsored for the first time this year by Staples, the world’s largest office products company based in Framingham, Mass.

Borg last competed in a tournament in the United States in 2000, but has competed in numerous events and exhibitions elsewhere around the world. He is best known for his five consecutive Wimbledon titles from 1976-1980 and his six French Open titles won from 1974 to 1981. In 2010, tennis fans will celebrate the 30th anniversary of his epic duels with McEnroe in the finals of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, the Wimbledon final being regarded by some observers as the greatest match of all-time. Borg was able to win his fifth-straight title at the All England Club and stave off McEnroe, playing in his first Wimbledon final, by a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7 (16-18), 8-6 margin, highlighted by the famous 18-16 fourth-set tie-breaker. The two rivals could meet again Saturday night in the semifinals in Boston if Borg defeats Pernfors and McEnroe defeats Wilander in the quarterfinals.

McEnroe was a singles finalist in Boston in 2009, losing to Pete Sampras 7-6 (10), 6-4 one day before his 50th birthday. He won the title in 2008, defeating Aaron Krickstein in the final, and was a finalist in the inaugural event in 2006, losing to Todd Martin. Sampras also won the title in 2007, defeating Martin in the final.

The Staples Champions Cup is part of the global Champions Series tennis circuit for champion tennis players age 30 and over. To be eligible to compete, players must have reached at least a major singles final, been ranked in the top five in the world or played singles on a championship Davis Cup team. Each event features $150,000 in prize money – with the tournament champion earning $60,000 – and ranking points that determine the year-end No. 1. Each tournament champion earns 800 ranking points. Courier finished the 2009 season as the top-ranked player on the series, followed by Sampras and Martin.

Former French Open semifinalist Fernando Meligeni of Brazil was the surprise winner of the opening event on the 2010 Champions Series, winning the title in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, defeating Philippoussis in the final.

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InsideOut Sports + Entertainment is a New York City-based independent producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Champions Series tennis circuit, a collection of tournaments featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including “Legendary Night” exhibitions, charity events, corporate outings and tennis fantasy camps such as the annual “Ultimate Fantasy Camp”. Through 2009, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment events have raised over $4 million for charity. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com or follow on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.