Before there was Jeremy Lin, there was Taiwanese American tennis great Michael Chang. Probably most 8Asians readers don’t remember or even know the name, but he is a tennis and Asian American legend as upcoming ESPN documentary notes:
““American Son” captures a pivotal moment in sports and history, as it chronicles the remarkable journey of Michael Chang, a young tennis prodigy whose ascent to fame coincided with an unfathomable and unforgettable upset of Ivan Lendl at the 1989 French Open. The documentary delves into Chang’s upbringing shaped by his family’s immigrant experience, his rapid rise in the tennis world, and the challenges he overcame to achieve success.”
This USA Today story further details Michael Chang:
“Though Chang was one of the great players of his generation, winning 34 ATP titles and reaching No. 2 in the world, he is in some ways the least-known member of the four American tennis icons who all came up together and largely dominated that era of the sport.
Pete Sampras won 14 Grand Slam titles and was widely considered the greatest player of all-time until Roger Federer came along. Andre Agassi was, and in some ways still is, a cultural icon. Jim Courier burned out after a short stretch of dominance but remains relevant as one of the sport’s preeminent commentators.
Kang, 44, wrote a lot about Lin during that era but remembered watching the 17-year-old Chang win the 1989 French Open. When Kang began to play tennis recreationally as an adult, the convergence of his interests and experience led him to the idea that Chang’s breakthrough and what it meant both for sports globally and Asian-American culture was worth re-examining.”
I remember watching live Michael Chang winning the French Open and listening to his victory speech since that happened the same weekend as the June 4th, 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and Chang mentioned that in his speech.
I look forward to watching this documentary, which premieres on ESPN Monday, July 29 at 7PM Eastern Time!
