American tennis star Frances Tiafoe held the first activation of his fund partnership with the USTA Feb. 6. The 26-year-old often referred to as “Big Foe” on the court, partnered with the USTA last July to create the Frances Tiafoe Fund. The partnership is designed to help youth from under-resourced backgrounds get into the sport of tennis and support their education. Tiafoe was born to immigrant parents from Sierra Leone. His family immigrated to the United States to escape civil war.
Having grown up in Maryland, Tiafoe got his start in the sport at a tennis center where he began competing at the National Junior Tennis and Learning Network. Now as a top player in the ranks (currently No. 15 in the world), Tiafoe can give back to the same program that allowed him to play tennis.
The clinic was held in the Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex on the SMU campus where 20 youth from the Kiest Tennis Center came out to play with Tiafoe. He expressed his gratitude to the USTA saying, “I mean, obviously NJTL changed my life. I mean we wouldn’t be having this conversation probably without it.” He hopes to continue holding clinics like this one worldwide and keep inspiring youth who come from similar backgrounds as him.
Tiafoe competed at the Dallas Open as the No. 1 seed, but was defeated by Marcos Giron in the quarterfinal on Feb. 9.
