2010 USA National Games
Roddick said he's "in awe" of Special Olympics athletes. For their part, the athletes attending the clinic seemed eager to show off their skills. Take a look
Tennis Great Hosts Clinic, Plays Unified Doubles
One of the world’s top tennis players came home to Nebraska for the 2010 USA National Games in July to share his skills with more than 80 Special Olympics athletes from around the country.
Local fans lined the court eagerly, awaiting the opportunity to catch a glimpse of hometown hero Andy Roddick in action. And Special Olympics athletes couldn’t wait to show the three-time Wimbledon champ how well they could do.
Dan Bratetic, a representative with the U.S. Tennis Association Missouri Valley, greeted the crowd and thanked them for coming. He then handed the stage off to Kirk Anderson, USTA Director of Recreational Coaches and Programs, who got the crowd ready to welcome Omaha’s own Andy Roddick to the court.
Roddick says that he was happy to be back in Nebraska. He told the athletes, “I’m in awe of all of you and I just thank you for having me here today.“ With that, he added: “So let’s get started!”
Anderson made use of USTA Quickstart program drills with the athletes and walked everyone through key racquet handling skills. Tennis balls bounced all over the place, and Roddick helped the athletes hone their skills as they practiced. Athletes then broke into a second set of drills in tag-team singles. Roddick took turns in line and took part in the action. Fans and athletes alike were enjoying the atmosphere and chatting with Roddick as he rotated throughout the stations.
After the drills came the most-anticipated part of the clinic. That’s when six Special Olympics athletes took part in three sets of unified tennis matches, pairing athletes with and without intellectual disabilities. The first match featured a Special Olympics athlete from Missouri, Simon Caldwell, playing with Andy Roddick as his unified partner. They took on another unified pair: Dillon Walker and Special Olympics athlete Brent Eriks, age 39, from Illinois.
In the middle of the match, the crowd laughed as Roddick told Caldwell, “That’s the closest anyone has ever stood next to one of my serves.”
Walker and Eriks went on to beat Roddick and Caldwell, 7-2.
In the second unified match, Roddick paired up with athlete Katherine Richards, age 21, from Special Olympics Texas.
"He had slices and I had slices," she said. "We communicated well, and it was the best time of my life to play with Andy Roddick!"
Richards held her own on the court, and so did Special Olympics athlete Krista Genter, age 30, from Pennsylvania, who played against them. In the end, the team of Roddick and Richards won 7-2.
For the final match of the clinic, SO athlete James Reiter, age 46, from Ohio and SO athlete Billy Harris, age 41, from Massachusetts took to the court. Roddick’s streak continued, as he and Reiter won, 5-4.
It was a great morning of activity for everyone involved. "I'm just so happy to be a part of this," Roddick said. "It's an honor to be back here in Nebraska and honestly, being here is one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. I'm just humbled to be here."