Unleash Chang!
Posted Jan. 25, 2008 at 6:41 pm by Brian Miller
He won the French Open. He represented the U.S. at the 1992 Olympics. And now Mercer Island's semi-retired tennis pro Michael Chang has been named to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. The New York Times reports here. And since our own resident tennis expert Huan Hsu is away on a top secret assignment in China, it's up to us to state the obvious. While Chang, with his 34 tournament wins, may not rank up there with Connors, Ashe, or Sampras, the guy was a breakthrough figure for Asian American athletes. Winning the 1989 French Open at age 17, he showed unbelievable grit and determination on the clay court, wearing down Ivan Lendl (in the quarters) and Stefan Edberg (in the finals) by returning every shot he could and running down every ball. Never mind those stereotypes about dweeby Asian kids on the chess team or math club and their SAT scores. Chang was tough, and a great example to all the kids who have since followed him onto the court.
Topics: Tennis
