The USTA announced that Tony Trabert, a two-time U.S. National Championships singles winner and long-time voice of the US Open on CBS Sports, has been named the 2014 inductee into the US Open Court of Champions, a US Open and USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center attraction honoring the greatest singles champions in the history of the U.S. Championships/US Open. Trabert will be inducted during an on-court ceremony in Arthur Ashe Stadium prior to the Men’s Singles Final tonight.
The US Open Court of Champions salutes the tournament’s all-time greatest champions with an individual permanent monument that serves as a lasting tribute. Trabert will join prior inductees Andre Agassi, Arthur Ashe,Don Budge, Maureen Connolly, Jimmy Connors, Margaret Court, Chris Evert, Althea Gibson, Richard “Pancho” Gonzalez, Steffi Graf, Billie Jean King, Jack Kramer, Rod Laver, Ivan Lendl, Molla Bjurstedt Mallory, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Margaret Osborne duPont, Ken Rosewall, Pete Sampras, Monica Seles, Bill Tilden and Helen Wills. A panel of international print and broadcast journalists selected the 2014 inductee from the roster of U.S. champions based on their performances at the tournament and their impact on the growth of the event.
“Tony Trabert’s contributions to tennis and to the US Open, both on and off the court, speak for themselves,” said Dave Haggerty, Chairman, CEO and President of the USTA. “Tony is a great champion and ambassador for our sport. He truly deserves to be honored among this illustrious greatest of US Open champions.”
Trabert is one of the most accomplished men’s tennis players of all-time, winning five Grand Slam singles titles, including the U.S. National Championships in 1953 and 1955. Trabert’s most successful year came in 1955, when he captured three Grand Slam singles titles at Wimbledon, the French Open and the U.S. National Championships. He peaked at No. 1 in the world and also represented the United States in Davis Cup, propelling the U.S. to a Davis Cup crown in 1954. Trabert officially retired in 1963 and later became captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team. Off the court, Trabert served as a lead analyst for CBS Sports’ coverage of the US Open for more than three decades, where the broadcast’s popularity helped expand the event’s visibility with audiences across the country. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1970.
Topics: Arthur Ashe Stadium, Tennis, Tony Trabert, US Open Court of Champions, Usta
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