Katrina Adams”™ tenure in the world of professional tennis has led her to such lengths as charity, broadcasting and behind-the-scenes work as newly named vice president of the White Plains-based United States Tennis Association.
Vivacious and straight-to-the-point, the Chicago native who now calls White Plains and Bradenton, Fla., home, says that “without tennis, I would not have gotten the opportunities presented to me in my life.”
Adams fondly recollected her court debut at 6 years old, joining her older brothers at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boys & Girls Club summers in Chicago.
“The tennis program was for 9 to 18-year-olds and I had to sit outside until one day, after two weeks, I made my way into the program and walked on the court,” she said. “They said I was a natural and that”™s how I got started.”
Adams began playing professionally in 1988 after majoring in communications at Northwestern University ”“ and earning accolades in 1987 as the first African-American to be named NCAA doubles champion.
“The first title I won on doubles was probably my second month on tour and it was the highest-level outside of a Grand Slam down in Boca Raton,” she said of her rookie days spent on tour with the Women”™s Tennis Association (WTA). “My first Wimbledon, I got to the fourth round ”¦ and playing with prominent players I”™d been watching for years solidified to me that I belonged.”
She credited tennis legend Zina Garrison as her career mentor, having been taken under the champ”™s wing both on and off the court.
“Having someone keep you focused and saying, ”˜Here”™s the business, here”™s what you need to do,”™ I”™m very grateful for her believing in me at a young age.”
During her time on professional tour, Adams ranked 67th in singles and 8th in doubles, capturing 20 career doubles titles.
Upon her retirement as a pro player in 1999, Adams coached nationally and joined the Tennis Channel during its launch in 2003 as lead analyst for the International Tennis Federation”™s Fed Cup competition.
In 2005, Adams was elected director at large of the board of directors of USTA, the national governing body of U.S. tennis and the U.S. Open.
Adams said traditionally, many viewed the organization from the top-down, but she wants to help remake the image from the bottom-up.
“There are millions of dollars that go down to the grassroots level of tennis,” she said. “One new thing this year is focusing on the importance of getting youth at a younger age interested in the sport.”
Her work with youth extends into her role as executive director of the Harlem Junior Tennis and Education Program.
“It”™s about trying to turn the tide of youth and removing them from video games and computers”¦ and capturing an entire new generation of kids who think this is a fun sport.”
Editor”™s note:Â WCBJ”™s WOW feature celebrates how women are a powerful economic force in Westchester. As company owners, entrepreneurs, CEOs, lawyers and other professionals, women are an integral part of the fabric of the county”™s business sector.
Who “wows” you in Westchester? Email your recommendations to Kelly Liyakasa at kellyl@westfairinc.com. And go to our website, westfaironline.com, and let us know what you think about these Working Women of Westchester.
