Chang elected to Hall of Fame

NEW YORK: Michael Chang, the youngest man to claim a Grand Slam singles title when he won the 1989 French Open, has been elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, officials announced on Wednesday.

Elected posthumously were sports executive Mark McCormack, who founded sport, entertainment and media company International Management Group (IMG), and publisher Gene Scott, a former player and tournament director who founded Tennis Week magazine.

Induction ceremonies will be held at the Hall of Fame & Museum in Newport, Rhode Island, on July 12.

The lightning-quick Chang was 17 years, three months when he burst on the scene as an unseeded player to win the French Open, the first American to lift the title since Tony Trabert in 1955.

In a 16-year career Chang reached a career-high ranking of No 2 and was placed in the top-10 for seven years.

He captured 34 singles titles and was also a finalist at the 1996 Australian Open, the 1995 French Open and the 1996 US Open.

Chang was also a member of the 1990 Davis Cup-winning team.

McCormack, who died in 2003, is credited with launching the field of sports marketing as founder, chairman and chief executive of IMG.

Scott, who died in 2006, wrote more than 20 tennis books and boldly took on relevant issues in the game in his Tennis Week column "Vantage Point".

Agencies

(China Daily 01/25/2008 page24)