Black Tennis Pros

Read the rest of this post...........

Activity came to a stop in the sleepy village of Matooni on the foothills of Manooni hills as Serena Wiliams, the world number two ranked tennis player, opened a secondary school named after her in the area on Friday.

Spends Saturday At The Sadili Oval Tennis Academy in Nairobi



Serena Williams, the world number two ranked tennis player, was quite at home on the court as she took children through the paces at Sadili Oval Tennis Academy in Nairobi on Saturday.

Read the rest of this post...........

I have NEVER seen Russian Nikolay Davydenko this emotion filled at the end of winning any match that I've ever seen him play. You know Davydenko, he's pretty low key. When he wins he's pleased, and when he loses he pleased...comme si, comme ca, it's all good, right on.

Well, at least that's how he was before he was so brutally saddled with being the face of illegal betting inside of tennis. COME ON! Davydenko? I know that looks can be deceiving, but Davydenko?

In the wake of that pitiful investigation, Davydenko's game went south quick, fast and in a hurry. He had become one of my favorites on the tour, especially for being so nonchalant in scraping the court with his opponents behinds so unsuspectingly. The guy was just masterful at maintaining the most even temperament I'd ever seen on court.

Now that he's been cleared, looks like Davydenko has his groove back and this time with a passion! After defeating Britain's Andy Murray in straight sets 7-5, 6-2 in the semifinal of the Tennis Masters Cup Shanghai yesterday, Davydenko got his tennis yell on. I for one am glad to see it. I am glad that he's recovering his game, and this time putting some feeling into it... in yo face!

Read the rest of this post...........

On Sunday November 16, for the first time since the November 4th election, President-Elect Barack Obama and wife Michelle will sit down together for an interview with with CBS's 60 Minutes.


Actual Interview


Watch CBS Videos Online

Read the rest of this post...........

The Tennis Masters Cup Shanghai began a bit rough for France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. You remember, the whole "towelgate" thing? Then there was the very tight loss to Spanaird Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/5). After having just won the Paris Masters, the tables turned dramatically on Tsonga. All of that drama ended today.

Tsonga, who was already eliminated from competition and having lost the first set, came swinging back and stopped a potential clean sweep of the Gold Group by Serbian Novak Djokovic. Tsonga defeated Djokovic 1-6, 7-5, 6-1. The Frenchman fought back in the second set and was a man on fire in the third. It was poetry in motion.

It seems as if ever since his loss in the Australian Open final this year, Tsonga has pretty much had Djokovic's number. This defeat gives Tsonga three wins in a row over the Djokovic after his victories in Bangkok and Paris.

"He was better than me in the first two sets, but I took the second one. It was daylight robbery!" Tsonga said.

Djokovic's status wasn't harmed by the loss, he will still win the Gold Group and moves on to the semifinals. However, judging from his "crowd" comment, he's feeling a bit funky about the loss.

"It's not easy. This is the tournament for the best eight players in the world. Every match is difficult and you've got to give your best to win," Djokovic said.

"He had more support from the crowd, but I don't blame them. He's a good player, an interesting player, plays with a lot of emotion. He deserved to win today."

Shanghai is hosting the 4.45-million-dollar Tennis Masters Cup for the last time before it moves to London as the World Tour Final. It will hold Asia's only tournament of the new Masters 1000 series from next October.

Photos By Getty Images

Read the rest of this post...........

You know a force from heaven. You know something that God made. And Aretha is a gift from God. When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her. She is the reason why women want to sing.

Aretha has everything — the power, the technique. She is honest with everything she says. Everything she's thinking or dealing with is all in the music, from "Chain of Fools" to "Respect" to her live performances. And she has total confidence; she does not waver at all. I think her gospel base brings that confidence, because in gospel they do not play around — they're all about chops, who has the vocal runs. This is no game to her.

As a child, I used to listen to Aretha's music because my mom played "Do Right Woman" and "Ain't No Way" every single day. I would see my mother cry when she listened to those songs, and I'd cry too. Then I discovered her on my own with the Sparkle soundtrack. I must have played "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" 30 times in a row; eventually, I connected the dots to that voice my mom was listening to.

Even the way she pronounces words is amazing: In "Giving Him Something He Can Feel," when she sings, "Many say that I'm too young" — the way she says "I'm," you can almost see her saying it, like she's all in your face, but you're still right with her. You can really visualize her hands when she sings, "You're tying both of my hands," on "Ain't No Way" — it's the powerful way she hits the word "both."

When you watch her work, you can see why Aretha is who she is. When we did the song "Don't Waste Your Time" on my album Mary, she just went in there and ate that record like Pac-Man. She could be doing a church vocal run, and it would turn into some jazz-space thing, something I never encountered before. You'd say, "Where did that come from? Where did she find that note?"

It's beautiful to see, because it helps people with a lack of confidence in their ability, like myself. I look at her and think, "I need a piece of that. Whatever that is."

Read the rest of this post...........

I'm back in Africa. For the first time I'm visiting Johannesburg - South Africa. I'm here as a Global Ambassador for Hewlett Packard (HP). As a Global Ambassador I am traveling to different countries to promote HP's products, as well as participating in local charities to help people. Earlier in March, I went to India to promote the new HP computers- the super compact designs! It was awesome fun!


Today I'm working as an HP Ambassador in Johannesburg and we are working with the Starfishgreatheart Charity. (Yes it is one word) This charity helps give aid, care, and housing to kids with AIDS. These kids are mostly born with AIDS and they don't have the care that they need or can live with. The kids I met today were orphans. It was so sad to see them in this situation. They had so much hope and love in their eyes, yet a ting of sadness behind their pupils bringing me to tears.

Today we had a clinic with the kids! It was so fun. By the end of the day all the kids were laughing, smiling, and having the time of their lives!!! I was so happy for them! I saw a girl that was sooo pretty. I kept thinking she is too pretty and her personality is too big to have AIDS. It was sad to see. You realize that AIDS has no discrimination and no barriers. It pained me to see such wonderful kids with sadness in their hearts, but hope and love in their eyes.

HP donated funding to the Starfishgreatheart Charity. They are such a great company to be involved with working with such wonderful charities. I hope to see these kids again, and I hope today that we affected their lives by bringing life into their eyes and into their souls. I'm going to be in Africa for a little over a week. On Thursday we are going to Kenya to do the same thing. Let us all appreciate each day we have, and love each day.

Check out the South Africa photos from the clinic...


All my love and more from South Africa!"

Read the rest of this post...........

American Serena Williams shakes her groove thang at the Sony Ericsson end of year party at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel during the Sony Ericsson Championships at the Khalifa Tennis Complex.

Read the rest of this post...........

Tennis icon and super star Serena Williams will officially visit Kenya for three days this week to officially inaugurate a school built using her funds.

Ms Williams will officially open the Serena Williams Secondary School in Matooni, Makueni constituency in Eastern province, on Friday, November 14.

The school was built through partnership between the Build African Schools initiative - an American non profit making organization - and Hewlett Packard, the world's largest technology firm.

Hewlett Packard, as part of its commitment to support education in developing countries, will install in each school a computer laboratory and classroom, laptop, printers, the World Wide Web, and facilitate training for the teachers and students.

It is the first time for Ms Williams, who is ranked number three in the world, to visit Kenya.

She will be accompanied by among others, her mother.

Mr. Patrick O'Sullivan, Founder and CEO of Build African Schools, said the objective of the Non-Profit Organisation to build primary and secondary schools in marginalized areas to give chance to students to access secondary school education in a bid to empower them.

"We are indeed honored to have Ms Williams visit Kenya at this momentous time in American history when we have a new President elect who has roots in Kenya," said Mr Dickson Mutaiti, the Director of Projects Build African Schools in Kenya.

"During her visit, Ms Williams will officially open a secondary school put up in her name, to give chance to needy primary school students who want to pursue secondary school education," Mr Mutaiti said.

Serena Williams's secondary school is located in Mutyamboa location, Makueni Constituency, near Sultan Hamud Township along the Nairobi Mombasa Road.

The school will give chance to hundreds of primary school pupils in the location to pursue secondary school education.

The area is semi arid, with schools far in and between.

The area suffers from high school drop out rate, and most students are orphans due to the high HIV /Aids prevalence rate in the area.

Build African Schools and HP have joined together since 2004 to help children in Africa have access to education.

The partnership will result in new schools constructed by Build African Schools which will then be fully equipped by Hewlett Packard with their state of the art computers and printers. Solar Power and the internet will also be installed at each school.

By building schools and equipping them with electricity, computers and other teaching aids, Build African Schools and Hewlett Packard offers children educational opportunities and choices that will ultimately empower them to determine their own future.

Read the rest of this post...........

Read the rest of this post...........

Earlier today one of my regular readers, Hasheem, brought it to my attention that Rodney Harmon, former Men's High Performance Director at the USTA, had been let go. Of course my curiosity was peaked, as Rodney Harmon just recently served as the USA Olympic Men's Team Head Coach.

My research turned up this USA Today article that is very involved, and among a lot of other things, reports the following:

"The USTA has been in supplemental-type coaching, but now we are putting ourselves on the line for players who want to be part of the program," says Patrick McEnroe, who was hired in April to oversee the elite development program along with his duties as U.S. Davis Cup captain. "We want to have more people out there working together on a common cause to find talent that will be playing at the U.S. Open one day."

McEnroe, an easy-going consensus builder but hard-nosed decision maker, has not wasted time in shaking up the staff and hiring new blood.

Last month he removed men's high performance director Rodney Harmon and women's director Jean Nachand; they will be replaced by Jay Berger and Ola Malmqvist, who were both promoted from within the USTA coaching ranks. McEnroe has let go of several other coaches, mostly at the USTA's West Coast training site in Carson, Calif. In September he brought in former top-10 player Jose Higueras as director of coaching for the program.

USTA chief executive of professional tennis Arlen Kantarian, who hired McEnroe and oversaw development, is leaving, too.

Once content to let private academies such as Bollettieri/IMG churn out another Andre Agassi or hope superstars like the Williams sisters would emerge from the inner city or suburbs, the USTA now runs a full-time boarding program in Boca Raton, Fla., in conjunction with the Evert Tennis Academy, where the country's best juniors can live, train and go to school — all for free.

Another part of the article states:

For the first time since 2002, both Venus and Serena Williams are competing this week in the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Championships as two of the eight qualifiers in the season finale. Next week Andy Roddick will tee up American hopes in Shanghai, having reached the season-ending Masters Cup for a sixth consecutive year.

Those strengths of U.S. tennis, however, can't hide the glaring weakness in the next generation.

"I don't think we're on the right track," eighth-ranked Venus Williams said Monday of the flagging U.S. fortunes. "I'm not sure what track we should be on, but it does seem like we should be able to produce some players, especially with our history throughout the game. … So hopefully we can figure it out soon, because we can also see the sport waning some in the U.S., which wouldn't be good."

Beyond Venus, 28, and Serena, 27, the drop-off for U.S. women is precipitous. No other Americans are in the top 35, and just five occupy slots in the top 100. None is younger than 23. That's a far cry from the 1980s, when U.S. women represented half or more of the year-end top 10 seven times between 1980-88.

Sixth-ranked Roddick, 26, remains an elite mainstay along with late bloomer James Blake, who is ranked No. 10 and turns 29 next month. Of the remaining seven men in the top 100, only 21-year-olds Sam Querrey (No. 40) and Jesse Levine (No. 94) are under the age of 26.

This is an extensive article and offers a lot more, to read it in its entirety click here.

Read the rest of this post...........

Oh my...Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was a tad po'd at the ball kids for his opening loss at the Masters Cup. Tsonga's catching a bit of flack and being called a "debutante" for getting frustrated at the towel service today.

Tsonga said that he "lost energy" waiting for ball kids to bring him his towel between points as he was defeated by Nikolay Davydenko in three sets, 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(0).

"When I ask for my towel, my towel didn't come, when I ask for a ball, the ball didn't come. That's it."

"You are here and you want your towel. You say one time, two times, three times, and then you ask the other guy," said Tsonga. "The other guy looks around, so you have to say one time, two times, three times, and the towel comes."

Tsonga claimed that he paced an extra kilometre going for his towels. "Sometimes I have to take my towel alone. So for me it's maybe 10 meters more. But if you count at the end of the match, it's like one kilometre."

Well, quite frankly I think it's a refreshing excuse, most of the players blame the racquet as they beat it to death. I'm glad to see him try something new...BWAAAAHAHAHAHA!!

Read the rest of this post...........

Yesterday as I was creating my post for Venus Williams' oh so fabulous win at the Sony Ericsson Championshps in Doha, Qatar, I couldn't help but notice the very regal and chic Sheikha Moza, wife of Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.

Not only did Sheikha Moza attend the final but she also presented the trophies to the winners of the singles and doubles tournaments.

Her presence just goes to show all you fashionistas out there that a little goes a very long way. Sheikha Moza is covered in black literally from head to toe and yet she looks like a million bucks!

That's one hot Sheikha!

Read the rest of this post...........

Writer Jasmyne Cannick has taken a critical look at California's Proposition 8 and the Black vote that assisted in its passage last Tuesday. For those of you not familiar with the proposition, it basically amended the state Constitution to restrict the definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman. It would overturn a recent California Supreme Court decision that had recognized same-sex marriage in California as a fundamental right.

It is being widely reported throughout the media that 69% of the Black vote was for Proposition 8. That fact (if it is accurate) is also being widely addressed, panned and criticized. I could go on about this issue, but I believe that Jasmyne addresses it very well. Take a read and see what you think.



Election '08: No-on-8's White Bias

(Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times
Opinion
By Jasmyne A. Cannick
November 8, 2008

I am a perfect example of why the fight against Proposition 8, which amends the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriage, failed to win black support.

I am black. I am a political activist who cares deeply about social justice issues. I am a lesbian. This year, I canvassed the streets of South Los Angeles and Compton, knocking on doors, talking politics to passers-by and working as I never had before to ensure a large voter turnout among African Americans. But even I wasn’t inspired to encourage black people to vote against the proposition.

Why? Because I don’t see why the right to marry should be a priority for me or other black people. Gay marriage? Please. At a time when blacks are still more likely than whites to be pulled over for no reason, more likely to be unemployed than whites, more likely to live at or below the poverty line, I was too busy trying to get black people registered to vote, period; I wasn’t about to focus my attention on what couldn’t help but feel like a secondary issue.

The first problem with Proposition 8 was the issue of marriage itself. The white gay community never successfully communicated to blacks why it should matter to us above everything else — not just to me as a lesbian but to blacks generally. The way I see it, the white gay community is banging its head against the glass ceiling of a room called equality, believing that a breakthrough on marriage will bestow on it parity with heterosexuals. But the right to marry does nothing to address the problems faced by both black gays and black straights. Does someone who is homeless or suffering from HIV but has no healthcare, or newly out of prison and unemployed, really benefit from the right to marry someone of the same sex?

Maybe white gays could afford to be singularly focused, raising millions of dollars to fight for the luxury of same-sex marriage. But blacks were walking the streets of the projects and reaching out to small businesses, gang members, convicted felons and the spectrum of an entire community to ensure that we all were able to vote.

Second is the issue of civil rights. White gays often wonder aloud why blacks, of all people, won’t support their civil rights. There is a real misunderstanding by the white gay community about the term. Proponents of gay marriage fling it around as if it is a one-size-fits-all catchphrase for issues of fairness.

But the black civil rights movement was essentially born out of and driven by the black church; social justice and religion are inextricably intertwined in the black community. To many blacks, civil rights are grounded in Christianity — not something separate and apart from religion but synonymous with it. To the extent that the issue of gay marriage seemed to be pitted against the church, it was going to be a losing battle in my community.

At the same time that gays adopted the language of the civil rights movement, they never put into practice its core principles or demonstrated an understanding the people and history behind it. This how you have a gay couple in West Hollywood use a noose as part of a political effigy on the eve of one of the most important elections for both blacks and gays in California. I can tell you that didn’t go over too well with the black community.

Then there was the poorly conceived campaign strategy. Opponents of Proposition 8 relied on an outdated civil rights model, engaging the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People to help win black support on the issue of gay marriage. This happened despite the warnings of black lesbians and gays that it wouldn’t work. While the NAACP definitely should have been included in the strategy, it shouldn’t have been the only group. Putting nearly a quarter of a million dollars into an outdated civil rights group that has very little influence on the black vote — at least when it comes to gay issues — will never work.

Likewise, holding the occasional town-hall meeting in Leimert Park — the one part of the black community where they now feel safe thanks to gentrification — to tell black people how to vote on something gay isn’t effective outreach either.

In the past, it’s been common practice for the gay community to hire black faces, temporarily, to convince blacks to support gay marriage. The only problem is that the surrogates hired oftentimes are as far removed from the black community as the white gay community is.

Worse, gay activists have a history of financially supporting black political candidates, even though many of those same candidates will not openly support issues like Prop. 8. From Congressional members to state lawmakers, most black politicians were M.I.A. on Prop. 8.

There’s nothing a white gay person can tell me when it comes to how I as a black lesbian should talk to my community about this issue. If and when I choose to, I know how to say what needs to be said. Many black gays just haven’t been convinced that this movement for marriage is about anything more than the white gays who fund it (and who, we often find, are just as racist and clueless when it comes to blacks as they claim blacks are homophobic).

Some people seem to think that homophobia trumps racism, and that winning the battle for gay marriage will symbolically bring about equality for everyone. That may seem true to white gays, but as a black lesbian, let me tell you: There are still too many inequalities that exist as it relates to my race for that to ever be the case. Ever heard of “driving while black”? Ever looked at the difference between the dropout rates for blacks and for whites? Or test scores? Or wages? Or rates of incarceration?

And in the end, black voters in California voted against gay marriage by more than 2 to 1.

Maybe next time around — because we all know this isn’t over — the gay community can demonstrate the capacity and willingness to change that America demonstrated when it went to the polls on Nov. 4. Black gays are depending on their white counterparts to finally “get it.”

Until then, don’t expect to make any inroads any time soon in the black community on this issue — including with this black lesbian.

JasmyneCannick.com

Read the rest of this post...........

Wow, talk about energy! What a zoned in week for American Venus Williams. Today she became the winner of the 2008 WTA's Sony Ericsson Championships for the first time. Venus took out Russian Vera Zvonareva 6-7(5), 6-0, 6-2.

As in her Thursday match with baby sis Serena, Venus couldn't hold on to the first set, but let it fly in the second two and just surged with power against Zvonareva. Venus became more determined and very precise as she ramped up a very aggressive game.

"I'm so excited," Williams said. "That was a hard-fought match, every point, right down to the end."

Venus took home a fat $1.34 million. This is the first year in which equal prize money was paid, as in the men's season-ending ATP Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai.

Both Venus and Zvonareva will bump up two places in the rankings.

Venus is keeping her eyes on the prize, of her ranking she said "I know I can go higher."

Zvonareva became so undone that, as in years gone by, she was reduced to tears as her efforts failed her. But this young woman played her butt off this week, and if she wants to cry at this loss, she earned it. Doesn't that just bring to mind, "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to, cry if I want to, cry if I want, you would cry too if it happened to you..." I couldn't resist.


The first lady of Qatar, Sheika Mozah bint Nasser al-Missned, presented the trophy to Williams.

"Thanks to your Royal Highness for coming. Wow," Williams said.

The trophy is named after tennis great Billie Jean King, a vocal proponent of equal prize money for male and female tennis players. She sat with Mozah and other dignitaries during the match and joined Williams on court for the award ceremony.

Read the rest of this post...........

Five-time Wimbledon champion American Venus Williams is looking to end 2008 on high note...a first-time win at the Sony Ericsson Year-End Championships in Doha, Qatar.

Today, after going undefeated this week and having to take out one of her most fierce opponents, baby sis World No. 3 Serena, Venus went toe-to-toe with World No. 1 Serbian Jelena Jankovic in a really grueling match that had many peaks and valleys for both players.

Venus came out strong and raced to a quick lead which led to her winning the first set. Unfortunately, the wheels became a bit whobbly in the second set and Jelena prevailed. Both players summoned as much energy as they could for the third set and put one another to the test, Venus was more up to the challenge. She defeated Jelena 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.

On being a bit fatigued during the match Venus said, "A couple of times I did feel distressed but you can't afford to lose these kind of matches,"

Sitting in the stands supporting Venus was mom Oracene Price and sister Serena who pulled out of the tournament on Friday morning with a stomach injury.

Venus will play a resurgent Vera Zvonareva in the final on Sunday.

Read the rest of this post...........