(Provided by Tennis World USA)
Two wheelchair tennis icons, Esther Vergeer and Rick Draney, told their moving stories in a moving ceremony celebrating their contributions to the sport of tennis and their inspiring perseverance in the face of tremendous adversity. Both legends in life and sport, their tennis performances were off the charts, with Draney and Vergeer winning doubles and 50-reel streaks.
Vergeer, now 42, would surely have added to that impressive tally with even more majors but for the fact that Wimbledon did not offer wheelchair tennis during the Dutch player’s tenure.Worth the waitBefore Draney and Verger were celebrated, some belated business was conducted by honoring Australian Judy Dalton, one of the original 9, who was unable to make the ceremony honoring the trailblazing women who fought for equal rights in the sport, culminating in the formation of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).
At the induction celebration in 2021, she videotaped her speech, but Dalton donned her Hall of Fame jacket in person this year and had her induction medal presented to her by the new International Tennis Hall of Fame Honorary President, Kim Clijsters. “I am very honored to be here today for the first time,” said C the honorary president for the first time in the role of the new honorary president in her list. 021, the original 9 of women’s tennis was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in recognition of the courageous actions they took to create an opportunity for women to play tennis professionally and earn a living through the sport.
I am personally very grateful of course. “A member of the Original 9 was unable to travel to Newport for induction in 2021. We were delighted to celebrate her today”. “First of all, Kim, I’d love to say thank you so much for presenting it.
Congratulations on being chairman. It’s wonderful,” Dalton said after Clijsters’ introduction. “I just want to say how honored I am to join this elite group. I feel like what we did as Original 9 was something unique.
To be honored all together, I would have loved to have been here, but this is about as good. Actually, it’s really better,” Dalton said, laughing.
"This moment is not mine alone.
It reflects the unlimited support, dedication and love that has surrounded me throughout my tennis career."
Strength, determination and defining expertise. @EstherVergeer is forever a Hall of Famer 🇳🇱 pic.EUtwitter.com/lOGT; International Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) 22 July 2023‘A testament to the power of endurance, resilience and determination’Rick Draney’s accomplishments included six U.S
Open and five British Open titles, three year-end world championships, two World Team Cup championships and a gold medal in quad rugby. He also retained the world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles quad tennis. Draney, now 61, would go on to pioneer the development of quad tennis – a division that also caters for arm impairment – to the sport and inclusion in the Paralympic Games. with or known,” said Jason Harnett, the current director of wheelchair tennis for the USTA, in a video shown during the ceremony, which took place on the grass courts next to the main stadium of the Infosys Hall of Fame Open. “He was exceptional and transformational,” Harnett continued.
“He taught me the art of constantly striving to improve. Everything Rick did in his life surrounded the desire to improve, including improving the lives around him”. At the age of 19, American Draney was seriously injured in a car accident.
As a result, he became a quadriplegic and unable to use any of his four limbs.
"Through my involvement in wheelchair tennis, I am proud of the opportunities I had to honor tennis by seeking to give back to the sport that had given me as much as so many others had before me." – Rick Draney
A pioneer, a role model and now a Hall of Famer.
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— International Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) July 22, 2023“From the first class in 1955 to the newest class in 2023, it is incredibly overwhelming to think that I am now one of 264 individuals in all of this great sporting history to be enshrined,” said Draney, who was also a wheelchair rugby athlete. “I am grateful for that journey.
I am proud of the determination that allowed me as a quadriplegic with little or no hand function to develop a method of securing a racquet in my hand consistently and comfortably so that I could play,” Draney said of his efforts to develop the sport of quad tennis. “I have sought to conduct myself on and off the court with integrity and respect for the sport and the division that means so much to me.”
Strength. Determination. Resilience. Excellence. But above all, integrity.
Welcome to the class of 2023! ✨#EnshrinementWeekend pic.twitter.com/Xiqp1; International Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) 23 July 2023 charset=”utf-8″>Overcome with emotion during the speeches, Dutch Esther Vergeer was introduced by her former coach, Sven Groeneveld, who paid tribute to her many achievements, including nine Australian Opens and six US
Open and French Open titles among her 48 major titles in singles and doubles. Her career spanned 18 years, culminating in her fourth Olympic singles gold medal at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, before retiring undefeated for ten straight years and an incredible 470 matches.
In addition, she owns seven Olympic golds in singles and doubles and remained world No. 1 for a staggering 668 weeks. For all these reasons (and more), Vergeer is considered by many to be the most dominant athlete of all time. “Esther inspired me,” Groeneveld said of Vergeer, who was diagnosed with an abnormality in her spinal cord after suffering multiple strokes as a child.
Surgery was attempted, but left Vergeer paralyzed in his legs at age 8. Through rehabilitation, Vergeer learned to play several wheelchair sports, including volleyball and basketball, in addition to tennis. “She made me believe that anything is possible.
Because it was inspiring to be with her on the field, but also off the field, to see her interact and to lead and inspire the people who see her, but also to have her help in her foundation,” continued Groeneveld.
"This moment is not mine alone.
It reflects the unlimited support, dedication and love that has surrounded me throughout my tennis career."
Strength, determination and defining expertise. @EstherVergeer is forever a Hall of Famer 🇳🇱 pic.EUtwitter.com/lOGT; International Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) 22 July 2023“Tennis gave me confidence.
Tennis made me laugh. Tennis made me take back control of my life, believe in myself, trust that everything was going to be okay,” Vergeer said tearfully during the ceremony. “I have never felt more comfortable than I have on a tennis court.” It’s an indescribable, almost magical feeling, Vergeer continued.
“Tennis transformed me into the very essence of who I am today: a testament to the power of endurance, resilience and determination.” Both sports icons have significantly contributed to opportunities for other wheelchair athletes through their philanthropic efforts after retirement. “I accept this honor and I am aware of the responsibility it carries, a responsibility to inspire the next generation of tennis players, including wheelchair tennis players, to foster a love of the sport and create pathways for individuals who dare to remain an inspiration,” says Vericker Vergeer to remain an inspiration.