Arthur Ashe was born in 1943 and was a remarkable tennis player. He was an underdog winner over Jimmy Connors at Wimbledon in 1975 and also won The US OPEN in 1968. In 1970, Ashe won The Australian Open singles title and also won two Grand Slam doubles titles. A superb athlete and one of the most respected players ever, he developed heart disease that required open heart surgery. Arthur contracted the virus that causes AIDS via the surgery and left us far too soon at age 50. To hear contemporaries speak of him, Mr. Ashe might have lived to become an important statesman or perhaps even President. It is only fitting that he is honored at the site of The US Open where the stadium court is named after him. His words after receiving his diagnosis showed the type of character this champion had:
“If I were to say, ‘God, why me?’ about the bad things, then I should have said, ‘God, why me?’ about the good things that happened in my life.
Arthur Ashe
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