Rosie Casals

Latine Tennis History To Be Celebrated At 2023 U.S. Open Highlighted By Ceremony On September 5

August 25, 2023 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

During the 2023 US Open, the tournament will celebrate the impact of Latine culture on society, including recognizing the significant contributions of Hispanic and Latine players to the sport of tennis.

The newly formed Latin American Tennis Foundation (LATF) will take part in this celebration, which aims to honor the past, present and future of Latine representation in tennis and beyond. The centerpiece of the celebration will be the US Open Equity Talk: Latine Influence on American Pop Culture & Sports, a networking event and panel discussion taking place September 5th at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, the home of the US Open. The event will bring together influential Latine leaders across sports, business, and entertainment to engage in a dialogue about the community’s challenges, achievements, and aspirations. As part of the event, and in conjunction with the 2023 US Open’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of equal prize money, Rosie Casals will be recognized for her role in advocating for pay equality in 1973.

This year’s tournament will also bring to life a message of equity and inclusion for all US Open attendees through the US Open Equity Experience. This immersive display aims to educate, inspire and celebrate the continued evolution of tennis to become a more inclusive and equitable sport.

Through videos, images and inspiring examples of progress, the US Open Equity Experience features key milestones in US Open history, alongside profiles and quotes of tennis players who have been instrumental in driving change throughout the years. With the support of the LATF, the Equity Experience will feature the achievements made by legendary figures such as Pancho Gonzales, Pancho Segura, Rafael Osuna, Alex Olmedo, Gabriela Sabatini, Mary Joe Fernandez, Gigi Fernandez and others, ensuring that their legacies continue to inspire future generations.

Other events celebrating Latine culture during the tournament will include a performance by New York dance group Ballet Hispanico on the opening day of Fan Week on August 22, as well as Hispanic and Latine tennis legends and influencers participating in pre-match coin toss ceremonies on September 5th.

The LATF strives to be the leading voice for Hispanic and Latine tennis in the U.S. and Latin America, with the goal of bringing awareness to current players, honoring past legends, and igniting a movement of participation and access.

LATF founders include Rosie Casals, an icon of women’s professional tennis, and Dan and Greg Gonzales, descendants of the legendary Richard “Pancho” Gonzalez. The Honorary and Advisory Board Members of LATF comprise Billie Jean King, a former World No. 1 tennis player and advocate for gender and LGBTQ+ equality; WTA President Mickey Lawler, Dr. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa, a renowned neurosurgeon; Dolores Huerta, a civil rights and labor leader; and Raul Humberto Yzaguirre, a civil rights activist and former president of the National Council of La Raza.

The US Open will also commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and honor Rosie Casals for her pivotal role in its formation. As a member of “The Original Nine,” she played an important part in establishing the Virginia Slims circuit and advocating for pay equality.

“The LATF remains steadfast in its commitment to celebrating Latino icons within the game, with a special focus this year on Rafael Osuna and the 60th Anniversary of his historic 1963 US Open title victory. We are dedicated to driving meaningful change, promoting participation, access and inclusivity, while inspiring generations to come,” said Rosie Casals, co-founder of LATF.

For more information about the Latin American Tennis Foundation and its programs, please visit their
website at www.latinamericantennisfoundation.org.
Contact:
Name: Greg Gonzales
Phone: (623) 414- 1012
Email:info@latinamericantennisfoundation.org

Rosie Casals Honored With USTA President’s Award

September 13, 2017 by tennisbloggers

The USTA has announced that former American tennis player and pioneer of the women’s professional game Rosie Casals has been honored with the 2017 United States Tennis Association’s President’s Award. Casals was honored at the USTA Semi-Annual Meeting earlier this month in New York City.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Casals is the daughter of parents who immigrated to the United States from El Salvador. By age 16, Casals became a top junior player in Northern California, and at age 17 she was ranked No. 11 in the United States.

Casals rose to No. 3 in the world in singles in 1970, and throughout her more than two-decade career, she won 12 major doubles and mixed doubles championships, played for the US Open singles title in 1970 and 1971, amassed 595 wins in singles and 508 in doubles, and was ranked among the world’s Top 10 players in 12 seasons.

Casals and Billie Jean King forged a partnership at the Berkeley Tennis Club in 1964. From 1966 to 1975, Casals and King won seven major doubles titles and were finalists seven other times. At Wimbledon, Casals and King won five championships (1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1973). In singles, Casals was a French Open finalist in 1968, 1970 and 1982, and she advanced to the Australian Open final in 1971. Casals and King are the only doubles team in history to win the U.S. Championships/US Open on all three surfaces.

Casals is currently involved with the NJTL Coachella Valley and coaches American junior Taylor Johnson.

“Rosie has been a motivating force behind the positive changes and progress in women’s tennis,” said Katrina Adams, USTA Chairman of the Board and President. “Her love for tennis reaches beyond the courts and translates into her continuous efforts fighting for rights of professional and women players. Rosie’s legacy and advocacy will never stop inspiring today’s youth to become the next great generation of American tennis players.”

The President’s Award honors an individual who has given unusual and extraordinary service to the sport of tennis in the public’s interest. Since its inception in 1999, award recipients have included Billie Jean King, Lindsay Davenport, Mary Joe Fernandez, Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan, former New York City Mayor David Dinkins, and United States Army veteran and tennis photographer Benjamin Woods.

On This Day In Tennis History Is Latest Book Release From New Chapter Press

November 11, 2008 by Tennis Grandstand

WASHINGTON, D.C. – New Chapter Press has announced the publication of its latest book – On This Day In Tennis History -a calendar-like compilation of historical and unique anniversaries, events and happenings from the world of tennis through the years – written by Randy Walker, the sports marketing and media specialist, tennis historian and former U.S. Tennis Association press officer.
On This Day In Tennis History ($19.95, 528 pages), is a fun and fact-filled, this compilation offers anniversaries, summaries, and anecdotes of events from the world of tennis for every day in the calendar year. Presented in a day-by-day format, the entries into this mini-encyclopedia include major tournament victory dates, summaries of the greatest matches ever played, trivia, and statistics as well as little-known and quirky happenings. Easy-to-use and packed with fascinating details, the book is the perfect companion for tennis and general sports fans alike and is an excellent gift idea for the holiday season. The book features fascinating and unique stories of players such as John McEnroe, Don Budge, Bill Tilden, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, Jimmy Connors, Martina Navratilova, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova among many others. On This Day In Tennis History is available for purchase via on-line book retailers and in bookstores in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. More information on the book can be found at www.tennishistorybook.com
Said Hall of Famer Jim Courier of the book, “On This Day In Tennis History is a fun read that chronicles some of the most important-and unusual-moments in the annals of tennis. Randy Walker is an excellent narrator of tennis history and has done an incredible job of researching and compiling this entertaining volume.” Said tennis historian Joel Drucker, author of Jimmy Connors Saved My Life, “An addictive feast that you can enjoy every possible way-dipping in for various morsels, devouring it day-by-day, or selectively finding essential ingredients. As a tennis writer, I will always keep this book at the head of my table.” Said Bill Mountford, former Director of Tennis of the USTA National Tennis Center, “On This Day In Tennis History is an easy and unique way to absorb the greatest-and most quirky-moments in tennis history. It’s best read a page a day!”
Walker is a writer, tennis historian and freelance publicist and sports marketer. A 12-year veteran of the U.S. Tennis Association’s Marketing and Communications Division, he served as the press officer for the U.S. Davis Cup team from 1997 to 2005 and for the U.S. Olympic tennis teams in 1996, 2000 and 2004. He also served as the long-time editor of the U.S. Open Record Book during his tenure at the USTA from 1993 to 2005.
More information on the book can be found at www.tennistomes.com as well as on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1627089030&ref=name and on myspace at http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=428100548
People mentioned in the book include, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Goran Ivanisevic, Andre Agassi, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Monica Seles, Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova, Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters, Amelie Mauresmo, Anna Kounikova, Jennifer Capriati, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Martina Hingis, Gustavo Kuerten, Svetlana Kuznetsova, James Blake, Wilmer Allison, Mal Anderson, Arthur Ashe, Juliette Atkinson, Henry “Bunny” Austin, Tracy Austin, Boris Becker, Kark Behr, Pauline Betz, Bjorn Borg, Jean Borotra, John Bromwich, Norman Brookes, Louise Brough, Jacques Brugnon, Butch Buchholz, Don Budge, Maria Bueno, Rosie Casals, Michael Chang, Philippe Chatrier, Dodo Cheney, Henri Cochet, Maureen Connolly, Jimmy Connors, Jim Courier, Ashley Cooper, Margaret Court, Jack Crawford, Allison Danzig, Dwight Davis, Lottie Dod, John Doeg, Laurence Doherty, Reggie Doherty, Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers, Jaroslav Drobny, Margaret duPont, Francoise Durr, James Dwight, Stefan Edberg, Roy Emerson, Chis Evert, Bob Falkenburg, Neale Fraser, Shirley Fry, Althea Gibson, Pancho Gonzalez, Evonne Goolagong, Arthur Gore, Steffi Graf, Bitsy Grant, Darlene Hard, Doris Hart, Anne Jones, Gladys Heldman, Slew Hester, Bob Hewitt, Lew Hoad, Harry Hopman, Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman, Joe Hunt, Frank Hunter, Helen Jacobs, Bill Johnston, Perry Jones, Bob Kelleher, Billie Jean King, Jan Kodes, Karel Kozeluh, Jack Kramer, Rene Lacoste, Bill Larned, Art Larsen, Rod Laver, Ivan Lendl, Suzanne Lenglen, George Lott, Gene Mako, Molla Mallory, Hana Mandlikova, Alice Marble, Dan Maskell, Simone Mathieu, Mark McCormack, John McEnroe, Ken McGregor, Kitty Godfree, Chuck McKinley, Maurice McLoughlin, Frew McMillian, Don McNeill, Elisabeth Moore, Angela Mortimer, Gardnar Mulloy, Ilie Nastase, Martina Navratilova, John Newcombe, Yannick Noah, Jana Novotna, Betty Nuthall, Alex Olmedo, Rafael Osuna, Frank Parker, Gerald Patterson, Budge Patty, Fred Perry, Nicola Pietrangeli, Adrian Quist, Patrick Rafter, Dennis Ralson, Vinnie Richards, Nancy Richey, Cliff Richey, Bobby Riggs, Tony Roche, Mervyn Rose, Ken Rosewall, Elizbeth Ryan, Gabriela Sabatini, Pete Sampras, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Manuel Santana, Dick Savitt, Ted Schroeder, Gene Scott, Richard Sears, Frank Sedgman, Pancho Segura, Vic Seixas, Frank Shields, Pam Shriver, Stan Smith, Fred Stolle, Bill Talbert, Bill Tilden, Tony Trabert, Lesley Turner, Jimmy Van Alen, John Van Ryn, Guillermo Vilas, Ellsworth Vines, Brian Gottfried, Virginia Wade, Holcombe Ward, Watson Washburn, Mal Whitman, Mats Wilander, Tony Wilding, Helen Wills Moody, Sidney Wood, Robert Wrenn, Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Todd Woodbridge, Marat Safin, Leslie Allen, Sue Barker, Jonas Bjorkman, Mahesh Bhupathi, Donald Dell, Albert Costa, Mark Cox, Owen Davidson, Pat Cash, Mary Carillo, John Isner, Roscoe Tanner, Vijay Amritraj, Mark Woodforde, Tim Henman, Richard Krajicek, Conchita Martinez, Mary Joe Fernandez, Cliff Drysdale, Mark Edmondson, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Zina Garrson, Roland Garros, Wojtek Fibak, Tom Gullikson, Andres Gimeno, Vitas Gerulaitis, Fernando Gonzalez, Tim Henman, Goran Ivanisevic, Andrea Jaeger, Ivo Karlovic, Richard Krajicek, Petr Korda, Luke Jensen, Murphy Jensen, Rick Leach, Iva Majoil, Barry MacKay, Ivan Ljubicic, Cecil Mamiit, David Caldwell, Alex Metreveli, Nicolas Massu, Todd Martin, Gene Mayer, Thomas Muster, Tom Okker, Charlie Pasarell, Mary Pierce, Whitney Reed, Leander Paes, Renee Richards, Helen Sukova, Michael Stich, Betty Stove, Ion Tiriac, Brian Teacher, Wendy Turnbull, Richards, Fabrice Santoro, Ai Sugiyama, Patrick McEnroe, Camille Pin, Phil Dent, Jelena Dokic, Mark Edmondson, Gael Monfils, Xavier Malisse, Dinara Safina, Barry Lorge, Stefano Pescosolido, Fabrice Santoro, Roscoe Tanner, Philipp Kohlschreiber, Roger Smith, Erik van Dillen, Gene Mayer, Tamara Pasek, Stefan Koubek, Jie Zheng, Gisela Dulko, Kristian Pless, Chuck McKinley, Marty Riessen, Brad Gilbert, Tim Mayotte, Andrea Petkovic, Klara Koukalova, Bobby Reynolds, Dominik Hrbaty, Andreas Seppi, Christopher Clarey, Casey Dellacqua, Anders Jarryd, Janko Tipsarevic, Nadia Petrova, Christian Bergstrom, Ramesh Krishnan, Emily Sanchez, Marcos Baghdatis, Mark Philippousssis, Wally Masur, Paul McNamee, Daniela Hantuchova, Gerry Armstrong, Younes El Aynaoui, Thomas Johansson, Pat Cash, Lisa Raymond, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Chanda Rubin, Tony Roche, Alex O’Brien, Petr Korda, Karol Kucera, Amelie Mauresmo, Juan Gisbert, Pablo Cuevas, Jim Pugh, Rick Leach, Julien Boutter, Larry Stefanki, Chris Woodruff, Jill Craybas, Sania Mirza, Mike Leach, Maggie Maleeva, Guillermo Canas, Guillermo Coria, Donald Young, Dick Stockton, Johan Kriek, Milan Srejber, Zina Garrison, Slyvia Hanika, Karin Knapp, Laura Granville, Kei Nishikori, Scott Davis, Paul Goldstein, Alberto Martin, Nicolas Kiefer, Joachim Johansson, Jonathan Stark, Jakob Hlasek, Jeff Tarango, Amanda Coetzer, Andres Gomez, Richey Reneberg, Francisco Clavet, Radek Stepanek, Miloslav Mecir, Jose-Luis Clerc, Colin Dibley, Mikael Pernfors, Martin Mulligan, Robbie Weiss, Hugo Chapacu, Victor Pecci, Charlie Bricker, Greg Rusedski, Robin Finn, Kimiko Date, David Nalbandian, Goran Ivanisevic, Mikhail Youzhny, Nicole Pratt, Bryanne Stewart, Novak Djokovic, Rennae Stubbs, Corina Morariu, Marc Rosset, Kenneth Carlsen, Kimiko Date, Ryan Harrison, Richard Gasquet, Jimmy Arias, Jim Leohr, Felix Mantilla, Cedric Pioline, Annabel Croft, Brooke Shields, Jaime Yzaga, Slobodan Zivojinovic, Alberto Mancini, Peter McNamara, Andrei Chesnokov, Fabrice Santoro, Bud Collins, Mardy Fish, Sebastien Grosjean, Donald Dell, Petr Kuczak, Magnus Norman, Hicham Arazi, Nduka Odizor, Lori McNeil, Horst Skoff, Karolina Sprem, Ros Fairbank, Linda Siegel, Chris Lewis, Kevin Curren, Thierry Tulasne, Guy Forget, Fred Tupper, Jaime Fillol, Belus Prajoux, Ricardo Cano, Georges Goven, Ray Moore, Charlie Pasarell, Paul Annacone, Tomas Smid, Dmitry Tursunov, Elena Dementieva, Arnaud DiPasquale, Carl Uwe Steeb, Bill Scanlon, Jose Higueras, Jay Berger, Jana Novotna, Bill Dwyre, Lisa Dillman, Sean Sorensen, Paul McNamee, Jiri Novak, Benjamin Becker, Ion Tiriac, Neil Amdur, Tim Gullikson, Jan-Michael Gambill, Taylor Dent, Bryan Shelton, Vijay Amritraj, Martin Verkerk, Brian Gottfried, Carlos Moya, Jacco Eltingh, Adriano Panatta, John Feinstein, Aaron Krickstein, Wilhelm Bungert, Derrick Rostagno, Torben Ulrich, Daniel Nestor, Ray Ruffels, Cliff Drysdale, James Reilly, Andy Murray, Leander Paes, Alicia Molik, Barry MacKay among others.
New Chapter Press is also the publisher of The Bud Colins History of Tennis by Bud Collins, The Roger Federer Story, Quest for Perfection by Rene Stauffer and Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games by Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli and the soon to be released title The Lennon Prophecy by Joe Niezgoda. Founded in 1987, New Chapter Press is an independent publisher of books and part of the Independent Publishers Group. More information can be found at www.newchapterpressmedia.com