By Jason Cruz
Northwest Asian Weekly
Welcome to The Layup Drill! The Wimbledon Tennis Championships this past year featured some significant accomplishments and a notable reminder that there are issues larger than sports.
Harmony Tan bests Venus Williams
The 24-year-old French tennis pro had a breakthrough Wimbledon tournament. Harmony Tan, who is of Chinese Cambodian and Vietnamese descent, ousted Serena Williams on her way to the 4th round of the tournament. While she did not make it all the way to the finals, Tan had her most successful run in a Grand Slam tennis tournament of career.
Unfortunately, Tan’s run came with some controversy as she was planning to play doubles at Wimbledon with her partner Tamara Korspatch. On Instagram, Tan’s partner stated that she was at the court preparing and was not notified that she was pulling out until an hour before the match. It was to be Korspatch’s first match in a Grand Slam.
Born in Paris to a financial journalist mother and engineer father, Tan’s parents reportedly sold their home to help finance her aspiring tennis career. Tan trained at the Bollettieri Academy in Florida. She also trained in Switzerland at the home of the mother of tennis legend Martina Hingis.
In addition to tennis, Tan is an accomplished piano player and surfs.
Brandon Nakashima breaks through at Wimbledon
The San Diego, California native played well at Wimbledon. Brandon Nakashima’s father is Japanese American while his mother is Vietnamese. The 20-year-old’s highest ranking came this past June when he was 54th in the world. His 4th round exit to Australian Nick Kyrgios in a 5-set marathon was his best showing in a Grand Slam tournament thus far.
Nakashima had a successful junior tennis career having achieved the rank of 3rd in the world. Nakashima graduated high school a semester early to attend the University of Virginia (UVA) at the age of 17 to play tennis. He ended up 17-5 in singles competition and 20-3 in doubles competition in just his first year playing for the UVA tennis team. He was chosen as the Atlantic Coast Conference Freshman of the Year and part of the All-ACC Academic Team. But, just after one year at Virginia, he decided to turn pro and forgo his tennis collegiate career.
Turning pro seemed to be the right decision for Nakashima as he’s been on an upward trend since being on the Association of Tennis Players tour. His near upset of the highly favored Kyrgios shows that his game is ready for the professional tour. At 20, he is only going to get better.
Ohtani continues to amaze MLB
Los Angeles Angels pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani is having another spectacular season. Last year’s most valuable player in Major League Baseball won his 5th consecutive pitching start last week. In the game, he struck out 10 batters and, as a hitter, brought in two runs and stole a base to help the Angels. He was the first player, since the run batted in became official in 1920, to do it all in just one game.
Ohtani continues to be a unicorn among professional baseball players. He has the ability to pitch and hit at a high level. However, the Los Angeles Angels are not doing well despite his accomplishments as the team is in 4th place in the AL West, 16 games behind the division leading Houston Astros.
Hideki Matsui honored
Former Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui was honored in New York City for his contributions to baseball and helping to build cultural connections between the U.S. and Japan through the game.
Matsui accepted the Japan Society Award from former Yankees manager and Hall of Famer Joe Torre on June 21. The honor given to the two-time All Star coincides with the 150th anniversary of baseball’s introduction to Japan from the U.S.
Matsui, who largely spoke through a translator during his 10-year career in the MLB, delivered an acceptance speech in English from memory, recounting his decision to play with the Yankees after a successful career with the Yomiuri Giants. Matsui paid tribute to both Torre and his former manager with the Giants, Shigeo Nagashima, who was an avid fan of fellow legendary Yankees outfielder Joe DiMaggio.
Chinese F1 driver survives crash
F1 driver Zhou Guanyu is lucky to be alive after a huge crash at the British Grand Prix last month. Formula 1 is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel, single-seater formula racing cars. The cars can exceed speeds of 220 miles per hour, and the Chinese driver praises the ‘halo,’ a device constructed above the open cockpit of F1 race cars.
Zhou’s Alfa Romeo was flipped during the race and his car went upside down and slid for 200 to 300 meters prior to hitting a barrier, flipping, and being caught by a final fence, saving the car and driver from hitting spectators. The ‘halo’ served its purpose since the cars have no roof. The 23-year-old driver attributes his escape from serious injury to the device.
Jason can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.