[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 54 (Wednesday, April 15, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H2217]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   TRIBUTE TO KATRINA ADAMS, PRESIDENT OF THE U.S. TENNIS ASSOCIATION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to 
Katrina Adams, president of the United States Tennis Association.
  Mr. Speaker, the community in which I live, work, and represent is 
well-known for its production of high-profile and world renowned male 
athletes, individuals like Ernie Terrell, world heavyweight champion; 
basketball stars Doc Rivers, Isaiah Thomas, Mark Aguirre, Mickey 
Johnson, Kevin Garnett; footballer Darryl Stingley; and countless 
others who have excelled in athletics. All of them are males.
  However, I take this opportunity to mention two females. One is 
Dorothy Gaters, the girls' basketball coach and athletic director at 
the John Marshall High School in Chicago, Illinois, the winningest high 
school basketball coach in the Nation. The other is Katrina Adams, who 
grew up not far from Marshall High School and whose parents still live 
in the East Garfield Park community.
  Earlier this year, Katrina Adams became the first African American 
and the first former pro tennis player to become president and CEO of 
the United States Tennis Association, which is a 134-year-old 
organization that had barred Black athletes from its premier event--the 
U.S. National Championship, currently known as the U.S. Open--until 
1950, when it allowed Althea Gibson to compete.
  At 46, Adams is the youngest of the 53 people--among them, just four 
women--who have been the USTA leaders, an unpaid volunteer position.
  In an article done by the Chicago Tribune, the writer states that, 
although her term lasts only 2 years, Adams understands that her being 
the face of the U.S. Tennis Association can have a significant impact, 
especially at a moment when the best female player in the world, Serena 
Williams, is also an African American.
  Katrina is supposed to have said:

       I think having an African American as president is a huge 
     statement. It shows how far we have come within the USTA as a 
     whole.

  As family, friends, community leaders, old coaches, volunteers, and 
tennis fans gathered to congratulate and honor Katrina, they were 
reminded of something her mother, Yvonne, told her many years ago.
  Her mother said:

       Katrina, other little Black girls may not want to reach 
     where you are, but they will want you to do well, and you are 
     showing them they can do it if they put their minds to it.

  Philip Hersh also mentions in his article something that Billie Jean 
King is supposed to have said to her friend Katrina. She said:

       Katrina, if you can see it, you can be it.

  Her being the first person of color as the U.S. Tennis Association 
president--and as a former pro besides--sends a strong message.
  Her family, friends, and former classmates at Whitney Young High 
School, at Northwestern University, and in the East Garfield Park 
community were, indeed, a proud bunch as they gathered to salute the 
young lady they had watched grow up in the inner city, become a high 
school and college tennis star, a tennis pro, and, ultimately, the 
president of the United States Tennis Association.
  Congratulations to you, Katrina. We are all proud of your 
accomplishments.

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