Arthur Robert Ashe Jr.

For every kid, there's always that one hero they look up to. My hero is not like most people's. He doesen't have a cape and mask. He has a racket and tennis shoes. He is an activist who played pro tennis that few have ever heard of. His name is Arthur Robert Ashe Jr.

Arthur Ashe Jr. was born in Richmond Virginia on July 10, 1943. In 1950 Mr. Ashe lost his mother to complications during surgery. At the age of 10, Arthur found his first true love which was tennis. He played in Brookfield where he found his mentor Walter Johnson. Ashe played in his first integrated tournanment at the age of 14. At The age of 20 Ashe was on the UCLA tennis team. On June 21, 1965 Arthur Ashe won the Men's NCAA championship for the first time. At the age of 23 Ashe graduated from UCLA with a degree in business administration. On January 26, 1970 Arthur Ashe won the Australian Open.

Arthur Ashe was not only a great tennis player, he was an activist. He fought for the ones who couldn't fight for themselves. His first protest took place in South Africa. It was started because of the apartheid system of government. On January 11, 1985, Ashe was arrested outside the South African embassy for an apartheid protest that was taking place.

Ashe accomplished many things in his 49 years of living. He was voted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame at the age of 42. He was married to Jeanne Moutoussamy who was successfully following her dream of being a photographer. He met her after a tennis match. On sept 7, 1980 Ashe was named captain of the U.S Davis Cup team. While he was captain they won the championship in 1981 and 1982. In December of 1992 he was awarded the honor of being Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year.

protesting

As great as Arthur Ashe was, every good thing must end. Arthur Ashe, unlike most, fought hard for his life. The days he lived were great but like every pro, he had his hard times. He had several injuries. His last surgery before his death was on the day of June 21, 1983. Because of his many heart problems he had a double bypass surgery and after the bypass surgery he had a blood transfusion. After all the problems in his life he discovered five years later that he had toxoplasmosis which was a bacterial infection most people with HIV have. Arthur Ashe lived a great life but ended up dying February 6, 1993 at the age of 49 because of the HIV he had.