HBCUs celebrated during HBCU Live at the 2023 US Open
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Posted By: S. Moore on August 31, 2023 The culture, passion and pride of Historically Black Colleges and Universities was on display on Wednesday at the USTA BIllie Jean King National Tennis Center, as the 2023 US Open hosted its annual HBCU Live at the US Open celebration. A cornerstone of the US Open for the last three years, HBCU Live at the US Open honors the longstanding connection between the sport of tennis and HBCUs, which dates back to the early 1900s, but had not always been given its due. Notable HBCU alumni like Florida A&M University's Althea Gibson and Howard University’s David Dinkins, for example, championed progress in the sport: Gibson became the first Black tennis player to win a Grand Slam title at Roland Garros in 1956, and former New York City mayor Dinkins served as a USTA Board member and helped bring the US Open to its current home in Flushing Meadows. Some of the key initiatives of HBCU Live are the recreation of a traditional "yard"—the community space that's at the heart of HBCUs—in the South Plaza, featuring live DJs and LED screens showcasing HBCU tennis and cultural history. This year's event also featured an invitation-only networking event and panel discussion for HBCU alumni, influencers and supporters across the sports, business and entertainment industries on the current state of HBCU sports. Other on-site entertainment included the North Carloina Central University dance team and the school's Sound Machine marching band, as well as DJs A Fly Guy and DJ Heat, who are both HBCU alums. Famous faces including Lance Gross, Sequoia Powell and Monica McNutt were among those who enjoyed the festivities from a suite inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. I n conjunction with HBCU Live, and the celebration of the 50th anniversary of equal prize money at the US Open, women athletic directors at HBCUs performed the ceremonial coin tosses for the day's featured matches. In addition to fans around the grounds, this year's event event received rave reviews from American Chris Eubanks who adressed the festivities in his post-match press conference after losing his Round 2 match to Benjamin Bonzi. "I think it's a great initiative that's been started by the USTA," he said. "They started to have some of the Greeks come out, having the step show around the fountains, and that stuff that I grew up knowing about. ... When other players are walking by asking, 'What is that?' I have to kind of explain to them a little bit of what the Greek life is about, especially how prominent it is in HBCUs. "I think it's great. I love to see it out there. I wore one of the HBCU shirts in my warm-up this morning just because I was gifted one. I said, 'You know what, I think this would be pretty cool.'" SOURCE US Open org If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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