A Celebration of Tennis History and the Ripple Effect

As I pondered what to write about as the publication deadline for submission rapidly approached, the light bulb went off in my head. Politics, religion and civil rights really do not belong as subject material in Long Island Tennis Magazine or does it? After all, Long Island is a melting pot of people of varying backgrounds this magazine caters to is the audience. What can I write about that concerns our audience?

In terms of politics or history, what exists that can be so important that it transcends the game of tennis? So, I did some research and share with you in no particular historical timeline, some people who made our game what it is today, and at the same time, transcended the sports world.

Billie Jean King who worked tirelessly for equality of women and equal prize money became one of the most influential people of the 20th Century. Our National Tennis Center here in New York bears her name.

Arthur Ashe, an inspiring role model for African-Americans, social activist and high-profile campaigner for the HIV and AIDS communities, died in 1993. His measure of  influence 22 years after his death legacy burns as brightly as ever. A former U.S. Open and Wimbledon Champion, U.S. Davis Cup participant and Davis Cup captain, Ashe has the main stadium court at the National Tennis Center named in his honor, along with a striking statue of his likeness adorning the grounds.

Eighteen-time Grand Slam champion, Martina Navratilova, and one of the greatest women players ever, is a lesbian. Navratilova expanded the dialogue on issues of gender and sexuality in sports.

Then there was Richard Raskind, born in New York City in 1934, as she put it, was raised "a nice Jewish boy.” Who is Richard Raskind you may ask? As Renee Richards, she was denied entry into the 1976 U.S. Open by the USTA, citing an unprecedented women-born-women policy. She disputed the ban, and the New York Supreme Court ruled in her favor in 1977. This was a landmark decision in favor of transsexual rights. Through her fight to play tennis as a woman, she challenged gender roles and became a role model and spokesperson for the transgender community. She later went on to coach Martina Navratilova from 1981-1983.

Althea Gibson was an American tennis player and professional golfer, as well as being the first African-American athlete to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first person of color to win a Grand Slam title (the French Open) followed by Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 1957 and again in 1958. She was given a ticker-tape parade down Broadway in Manhattan in July of 1957 after her first Wimbledon Championships.

All of the above examples are great people who are rooted in tennis and helped make the world a better place for all people and all athletes in all sports. Once Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color barrier, the foundation was formulated which paved the way for many of these individuals to accomplish great things beyond just winning some tennis matches.

I was recently appointed head coach for USA's tennis team in the Berlin European Maccabi Games, in partnership with the United States Olympic Committee, that coincides with the 70th anniversary of the ending of World War II. I am just Lonnie Mitchel, a guy who loves to coach and give back to the game of tennis under the auspices of my heritage. I realized that this opportunity would have never come my way without the efforts of those great men and women who came before me. However, more than the honor itself to represent my country and heritage is that this assignment helped me understand the importance of their pioneering efforts. Their greatness proves that no matter the obstacles in your path, you can conquer and achieve enormous things.

In Germany in the spring of 1933, an "Aryans Only" policy was instituted in all German athletic organizations. "Non-Aryans"—Jewish or part-Jewish athletes—were systematically excluded from German sports facilities and associations. The German Boxing Association expelled amateur champion Erich Seelig in April 1933 because he was Jewish (Seelig later resumed his boxing career in the United States). Another Jewish athlete, Daniel Prenn—Germany's top-ranked tennis player—was removed from Germany's Davis Cup Team. Gretel Bergmann, a world-class high-jumper, was expelled from her German club in 1933 and from the German Olympic team in 1936.

In 1931, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) foolishly awarded the 1936 Summer Olympics to Berlin. The choice was to have signaled Germany's return to the world community after its isolation in the aftermath of defeat in World War I. Two years later, Nazi party leader Adolf Hitler became chancellor and turned the nation's fragile democracy into a one-party dictatorship that persecuted Jews in particular and all political opponents, no matter the denomination. The Nazi claim to control all aspects of German life also extended to sports.

Members of the U.S. American Olympic Team were not immune to such discrimination as U.S. sprinters and Jewish athletes Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller were prevented from participating in the 1936 Olympic Games having been pulled from the 4×100 meter shortly before the event was to take place simply to not offend Adolf Hitler and his policies. There was already a lot of controversy with Jesse Owens competing in that Olympics in that he represented an obstacle to Aryan superiority. Yet, the United States saw fit for Owens to compete, but the two young Jewish men were pulled from competition well after qualifying for those events in the U.S. Trials.

On the 70th anniversary of the USA’s victory over Germany in WW II, the largest contingent of people of the Jewish faith since that time will come to Berlin, the site of the 1936 Olympics. The United States will send a delegation of 200 athletes with 20 of those individuals being tennis players from various parts of the USA joining more than 2,300 Jewish athletes from 30 countries to compete in a variety of sports in the European Maccabi Games. On July 28, the athletes will march in the opening ceremonies on the grounds of the 1936 Olympics, the same grounds where Adolf Hitler so proudly thought he would be showcasing Aryan supremacy.

Our game of tennis has done so much to close the differences between many. Although there is still so much war and political unrest in the world, maybe in my idealistic view of tennis beyond the courts has done its share to make the world a little better. It is unlikely the European Maccabi Games of 2015 in Berlin will get any television or newspaper coverage. However, names like Billie Jean King, Renee Richards, Arthur Ashe, Martina Navratilova and Althea Gibson may have a little something to do with the expansion of sports in competitions and venues such as this.