James Blake
Professional Tennis Player
Career Highlights: Professional tennis player James Blake combined his speed with a powerful forehand to record 24 career final appearances including 10 tournament titles. Once rated as high as the World No. 4 (November 2006), Blake’s career highlights include reaching the final of the 2006 Tennis Masters Cup, the semi-finals of the 2008 Olympic Games, and the quarterfinals of the Australian Open (2008) and the U.S. Open (2005 & 2006), as well as being the former American No. 1 rated tennis player. Blake was a key player for the United States 2007 Davis Cup championship team, going 2-0 in the championship vs. Russia. Blake was named the 2005 Comeback Player of the Year after he battled back after suffering from a serious neck injury and shingles. In 2008 he also won the prestigious Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year honor. His overall career record for the ATP Tour, Grand Slams, and Davis Cup was 362-251. Blake also had a strong doubles record of 129-117 including seven career titles. Blake wrote an autobiography “Breaking Back: How I Lost Everything and Won Back My Life.”