The letter Arthur Ashe sent Michael Chang about becoming a young tennis pro | ESPN 30 for 30
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- Опубліковано 20 жов 2024
- The letter Arthur Ashe sent Michael Chang about becoming a young tennis pro | ESPN 30 for 30
Michael Chang reads the letter he received from tennis legend Arthur Ashe during his own rise to prominence as a young tennis star.
"American Son" tells the story of Michael Chang’s improbable rise as a young American tennis star, including his 1989 French Open title at age 17. The 30 for 30 documentary premieres July 29 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.
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Any Asian American kid growing up in the 1980's remembers how powerful it was to just see Michael Chang on TV. Those were the days where we only got 5 channels on our TVs and we just didn't see Asian Americans succeeding in sports that much.
I grew up in China and was also very excited to see Michael on TV during those days!
There's no such thing as an "Asian American". You're an American of Asian descent.
100%!
Only 5 Channels in the US ?
In Indonesia we only have...4
I remember i saw Mr.Chang on Tv when i was a kid, i don't like Tennis back then but Mr.Chang got my attention
Now the fastest swimmer in the Olympic is a Chinese man. Never doubt our greatness.
Arthur Ashe was the epitome of grace and class. Just an incredible human being.
As great as a tennis player he is, it is surpassed by his grace and class as you said. He's passed on for years, but I missed him terribly. Is it true as they say, "Only the good die young"?
he would had been so proud to see guys like Tiger
@@The795pine I beg to differ. From Ashe's perspective, I surmise that he is more interested in the process of being a good professional tennis player and a human being than the end result. Tiger indeed surpassed Michael Chang in his realm by several times, but Tiger has many flaws as a human being compared to Michael. He has more in common with Michael than with Tiger, temperament-wise. Tiger would have a chance to beat Nickalus' records if he did not have that career-ending accident, but that is life
@@edtjfc1that’s probably right
@@edtjfc1 If Tiger had been white, (and I say this as a white guy...cause that will matter to some, unfortunately) half of those "flaws" would not have existed. No white player would have received that kind of media scrutiny and constant attention. And basically a "see told you so" when something bad went wrong. Just look at a guy like John Daley, who got second chance after second chance. People only started being sympathetic to Tiger in hindsight after they realized how racist everyone was being.
Imagine what that letter did for a young Michael Chang's confidence.... Thanks For Sharing!!!!
you can see that it still brings him to tears to this day, 40 years later
That was such a sweet, thoughtful and powerful letter from Arthur. I miss both of these players.
Ashe was a class act. This letter proves how unselfish of an individual he was. Only the good die young.
Nothing speaks more of Ashe’s love for humanity than this letter as far as I’m concerned. In it he was sincere, empathetic and vulnerable.
Billie Jean King may disagree.
Arthur Ashe, just a legend, wonderful assistance for people after,
Just excellent
Wow! What an incredible HANDWRITTEN letter from one of the greatest in character AND sportsmanship. Thank you for sharing it.
Typed, but - still awesome.
You always hear great things about Mr. Ashe but this just cements his pure kindness. What a great man. Chang was a goat for us Asians, I use to cherish his autograph. Ashe sharing his wisdom in such a graceful and inspiring manner was amazing
Thank you for sharing your letter Michael Chang! I miss Arthur Ashe. I watched you play tennis and I’m sure your parents were very proud of you !
Arthur Ashe was way beyond his time, what a true gentleman he was.
Michael, thanks for sharing the letter.
Total RESPECT for both of you.🙏
That was very generous of Arthur Ashe to share his wisdoms with Chang. He taught Chang to ignore the discriminations and be a better role model & player!
Thank you Mr. Chang. I was in high school when you started showing up on tv. I was very proud of you and you gave me a hope. Thank you.
Michael, you were my favorite tennis player.
Thank you for sharing your personal letter from Mr. Ash. 🙏
I was v lucky to catch Michael Chang winning French Open on TV from Singapore and I didn’t sleep well that night from the adrenaline I had never experienced before. I’m now playing tennis because of you. Thank you for inspiring many of us till today. ❤
This is so moving and kind of restores a bit of humanity for me. The class acts will always be class act, to inspire and be kind. I miss watching Michael plays, what a great time it was!
Heartfelt letter. Shows realism, intelligence, good heart, hope
I met Arthur once. He had presence. He had a relative who lived close to us and he who sometimes gave us a ride. I mentioned this to Arthur and my hometown and he knew exactly who I was talking about. And I saw Michael play when he was a kid and complimented his dad. He was very gracious.
Amazing words by Arthur to Michael
Two of my favorite tennis players of all time. Absolute legends off and on the court.
Chang is hardly a legand...
@@RK-um9tuSorry to tell you he's a legend and a household name.
@@RK-um9tuYoungest grand slam winner ever? He’s definitely a legend.
@@LegalMind-ds4wr That's an amazing record by itself. Men's slam winner. Barely beating Boris Becker by a few months. No surprise, all of the teenage slam winners are HOF-level.
Michael Chang got me playing and loving tennis. Seeing him succeed gave me such pride as he was small in stature but had a massive heart. Nobody tried harder on the court. Loved seeing him coach Nishikori.
Mr. Ashe endured/suffered a lot, silently. Doors of tennis are opened because of his sacrifices.
As did Chang.
Wow, this letter was so on point, especially for 1988. Being a child of the 80's, Michael was my hero. It's meaningful to me to see that Ashe cared for him.
As an Asian American who grew up in the deep suburbs of Washington DC, all I wanted was to fit in. I had friends but there was the loneliness inside of me because I couldn’t identify with who I really was. Then Michael Chang wins the French Open. I couldn’t believe how amazing his accomplishment made me feel. Years later, I’m living in the San Diego area and at the Ralph’s in Encinitas, I see him in the parking lot. I didn’t say anything to him but I think he knew.
Michael lived in the Seattle, WA area for a few years. My brother saw him in a Chinese restaurant and it was the same as you. He noticed and Michael knew.
That letter needs to be framed and preserved
Arthur Ash was a class act!
when i was 13 in 1989 i was at the us open and i saw him (arthur ashe) from a distance walking and talking with some other person on the grounds. i of course freak out and sprinted up to him with the open program and a pen, completely interrupted his conversation, and asked for an autograph. he couldn't have been nicer, stopped, and signed my program, and said take care. i was beaming for days after that, and i still remember it like it was yesterday.
Thank you for sharing. Gives us a glimpse of the challenges and mentality a young man faces in deciding to turn pro in America.
Chang's challenge wasn't turning pro, it a racism...
Wow, thank you sharing this letter and life story. Yeah to be the first Chinese American successful professional tennis player took lots of hard work, talent, and dedication to the craft. But more importantly it was your humility and grace that carried the day.
This reminds me of the Spider-Man proverb "With great powers come great responsibility". The wise Arthur Ashe passing on his wealth of knowledge and experience onto the young Michael Chang is so touching and note worthy. How fortunate Michael took on Arthur Ashes's wisdom and represented the Asian community well where there were not many to turn to at the time. I am sure this was hard on Chang as somedays he couldn't be himself in front of the cameras and media. Thank you both for doing so.
Ashe certainly paved the way. Glad Chang won Rolland Garros the following year for Ashe to witness in his lifetime
Whoa, what a gift. To have a legend of the game actually snail mail you advice and encourage you is probably unheard of.
What a profound and powerful letter that is!
This letter should be in a museum. Imagine the the suffering and struggle that Ashe must have been through in order to want to share his experience so that someone else could be better prepared.
Wonderful, so grateful to hear this story. Arthur Ashe is right..I’m an Asian born in the West (Belgium). I feel at home here, I’ve gotten many opportunities. But Mr. Ashe is right. I could never be like Mac. I wouldn’t have gotten far in life if I did. So instead Michael Chang was one of my idols in the 80s and early 90. I’m an MD today.
Congrats on being an MD. Like you I am Asian descent but born in France. Coincidentally after seeing Michael win his French open 89, my Asian parents decided to leave France for the US. I am not sure how much of Michael's victory in 89 had anything to do with us moving there. But my dad sure was impacted how good of a sport tennis was for me. I didn't like tennis but preferred basketball.
i vividly remember that '89 RG final -- can't wait for this docu
I cried when he died. I was super into sports as a kid and really admired him.
I loved Arthur Ashe, as I do Michael Chang
Elderly lady from Massachusetts
Arthur is such a well articulated man, i am so suprised to how well he spoke and sounded.
I can’t wait to see the 30 for 30. Thank you for sharing this clip 🙏🏽
A true, true gentleman, and an extraordinary grounds breaker! Both of them!❤❤❤❤
I never got into tennis, or had any interest in the sport growing up. But, I would always watch Michael Chang whenever he plays big matches on TV. As an Asian, he is someone I look up too as an athlete. He is a true legend. Thank you, Michael for sharing the letter with us. Love it!
Arthur Ashe was so graceful on the court.
It is easy to be bitter when being mistreated but Arther Ash turned the other way. That takes strength! He was profound.
Arthur was such as incredible human being. What a fantastic role model in comparison to some of the politicians and tech moguls we have today. I think we all miss those days where civility and class were important. Thank you ESPN for reminding us who Arthur was and what it meant to be a minority in America and the fact that it hasn't changed today.
I absolutely love Authur Ashe. He is the greatest tennis player in my heart. Michael you have a valuable heartfelt letter from him.
Growing up as Asian kid in the US in the 80s and 90s, he was one of the very few figures that I grew up watching on TV and thinking "hey, he looks like me", though I was of Japanese heritage. The stereotypes that Asians (particularly guys) face, his presence as one of the dominant players in his own sport was inspiring like Yao Ming or Ichiro a decade later, and influential to many growing up, letting us know we could all do to pursue a career path based on our choices and hard work and not let those presumptions and stereotypes take over.
Never pursued or pushed myself for career in athletics because I was more inclined to arts, but still enjoyed playing every sport I could.
Truly wonderful letter
Absolutely amazing story. I did not know this took place.
Wow. I didn't know about that letter. It's extremely powerful. And extremely direct, too. In hindsight, it explains a lot about Michael's behaviour when he started his pro career. He made good use of Arthur's advice.
Arthur 👏 Ashe
What an amazing letter, thanks for sharing..
Very touching. Both are great ambassadors of the game.
Arthur was 100% right. What's unfortunate is that this truth then makes things MORE challenging for you to succeed, because it adds so much more pressure. But it is the truth.
I heard Jim Courier call Chang a "Chinaman" during a tournament. Court mics caught it. Announcers said nothing.
😢
I remember
And this is why Mr. Ashe has an entire stadium named after him
even now, it is incredible to see how eloquent Arthur Ashe was. He is a tennis professional but speaks like a Harvard law grad turned attorney general.
This is just amazing from Ashe. He had zero reason to write this letter but he just wanted to lend a hand to a fellow minority.
That’s the definition of a leader. His death is beyond tragic.
Mr. Ashe's letter to Mr. Chang. What a treasure to have!
thank you for sharing
Ashe's book - Days of Grace is a must read.
Greatest Asian American athlete ever! Can't think of anyone else
4:04 sad that some people has the same sentiments about Jeremy Lin
True but in Lins experience, it was mostly the blacks players that took shots at his success and the entire NBA neglected to give him opportunity to play. Racism has expanded from the white to the blacks.
Legendary. There is so much teaching for the humanity in this letter.
I still got my Michael Changs racquet from highschool and been trying to find him at RCI/ Anaheim tennis club for him to sign it and make a kids dream come true lol
wow, how nice of him to write him a such a encouraging letter
If anyone who could understand Jeremy Lin during the Linsanity 2012 fame, it is Michael Chang.
Wow! What a wonderful human being Arthur Ashe was. Very touching video. So glad for this video.
Thank you algorithm for sending to me here to this great story. And thank you Michael for sharing this amazing letter
Ashe- what an incredible human offering critical advice to an up and comer he didn't know. Old school
Still Michael Chang. I recognized him immediately.
Wow. That’s an amazing letter.
Fantastic documentary 🙏🏻
what enormous responsibilities we place on the shoulders, hearts and minds of young athletes - huge respect for both of these amazing players
Did i just have tear in my eyes.. as an asian growing up..
Grew up cheering for you Michael Chang!! Great story
Michael Chang was an influence even here in Canada in the late 1980's where there was and still is a sizable Asian population who identified with his upbringing and his background.
Michael was one of those guys I used to hate to play.....a retriever.....a player that got every ball back.....
Before Jeremy Lin, there was Michael Chang
New respect for Ashe
Chang, Agassi and Goran. those were my dudes in the 90's. it was hard rooting in the 92 Wimbledon final ☺Pete, Andre and Courier won more slams overall, but Michael was the first to win one. A huge stat. no doubt. then that incredible win over Lendl during that title run. Guy always played hard every match.
Thank you so sharing. Such a very important piece in Tennis History and that's why I remembered Arthur Ashe more compare to other Tennis stars because of his Characters.
From one great to another
Excellent video
That was awesome
growing up in the 80s michael was one of the only asian role models outside of bruce lee. thank you michael.
What a great role model Michael Chang was.
The letter says so much about what Arthur Ashe endured. Throughout his life, he was always ready to reach out and help. He even came to his alma mater to speak to law students about how to best advise athletes they may later represent as lawyers. One funny, but true, bit of advice was to have the athletes buy Hondas instead of Ferraris. A great man.
What an amazing letter!
woww, such a hero
I played in Los Angeles in high school at the time that Sampras, Courier, Chang and Agassi were exploding on the scene. I was on one of the top teams in Los Angeles and more than half of our players on the team were Asian Americans. Honestly, honestly, I didn’t see any of racism growing up… but I know that’s just me. I’m so happy to be around a place that rejected racism.. and we just didn’t see each other as being different. we almost won the city that year, kind of felt like a blue-collar team. We took pride in taking out Beverly Hills, Pepperdine, Encino and all the rich kid territories….
F Racism!
Chang is an Icon! He broke down barriers!!
Powerful
a legend advising a then-legend-in-the-making, with said legend-in-the-making as a legend speaking on legendary advice shared from a legend #Legend
Impactful and uplifting
Awesome just awesome!
I love this - thank you for sharing!
Great video. Ashe has immense insight ❤
Touching.... ❤
The right sport spirit is as important as the capability and technique, if not more.
he gave him great advice
Michael chang seems very interesting
Amazing insights. Great champions.❤