Coco Gauff makes young tennis players from New Jersey dream of following in her footsteps: “Wow, I could do that too”

NEW YORK — Shortly before Coco Gauff was scheduled to play in the U.S. Open on Wednesday night, 14-year-old Ciara Owens and more than 20 other young tennis players from New Jersey were allowed to hit balls on mini-courts at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

It was a dream come true for Owens, a Trenton, New Jersey native, who was part of a group of 24 players who traveled to the Open with We Lead Sports Inc., a nonprofit organization serving more than 800 children run by Michelle Gbelama, a former No. 1 singles player at Drew University.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me,” Owens, a huge fan of Gauff, the reigning U.S. Open champion, told NJ Advance Media while standing outside Ashe, the largest tennis stadium in the world.

Gauff and her fellow American stars Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton are inspiring younger generations of minority tennis players to take up and pursue tennis, much like Venus and Serena Williams did when they started their careers in the late 1990s.

Gauff and Tiafoe are black, while Shelton is biracial. His father, Bryan, who is black, played on the ATP tour in the 1990s and later coached Ben at the University of Florida, where he won the NCAA singles championship. Shelton’s mother, Lisa Witsken Shelton, who is white, was also a high-ranking junior tennis player.

According to studies by the Physical Activity Council and the Tennis Industry Association, participation by black players increased by more than 60 percent between 2019 and 2023 (The Athletic).

Owens, who said she was “not surprised” that Gauff won her first major title at the Open last year, says Coco is a role model for her and other young players.

“Yes, of course,” she said. “Especially little girls and little boys, when they see someone up there on the big screen, they think, ‘Wow, I could do that too.'”

Stacey Allaster, tournament director of the US Open, praised Gauff for being an inspiration to players like Owens.

“She has a gift for understanding her role as a role model for current and future generations,” Allaster said Wednesday at a Rolex-sponsored media brunch in response to a question from NJ Advance Media.

“She just really understands the role and power of athletes.”

Allaster also acknowledged that Tiafoe and Shelton had a similar influence.

“It’s no surprise that they play tennis and were inspired by Serena and Venus, considering the number of African-Americans [playing tennis]”, she said.

“We want tennis to resemble the American model, and our athlete population also begins to resemble the American model.”

Owens has been playing tennis through We Lead for three years after her mother introduced her to the sport and passed her racquet to her daughter.

“I first found out about it from my mom,” Owens said. “She wanted me to be more involved in the community, so she wanted me to do more things that could help me in the future.”

Owens said her forehand was the strongest part of her game, adding that she had “a mean volley.”

Although tennis can be an expensive sport, she said the We Lead program allows her to play it at a low cost.

“This program showed me that you can play tennis for $5, a cup of coffee costs more,” Owens said. “You can just go to the thrift store or flea market and get a used racquet. Anyone can play tennis.”

Young boys like 11-year-old Matthew Diaz from Ewing, New Jersey, also benefit from We Lead, where he trains several days a week.

“For some reason I was watching tennis and was entertained, and I said, ‘One day I could probably play tennis.’ So yes, I play tennis,” he said.

Matthew is more of a fan of Rafael Nadal and American Tommy Paul, who was born in New Jersey and will play his second-round match on Tuesday.

John Diaz said his son was “very excited” to be among the tennis stars at the Open.

“It’s really just about using tennis as an opportunity to become better citizens in their community,” Gbelama said.

Gbelma said their program started an academy with the 24 players who competed in the Open, but they were looking for a year-round facility for the academy “to really help them use tennis as a vehicle to become a famous tennis player or help them get into college like I did.”

After making a brief appearance on Ashe Stadium court on Wednesday, Owens dreams of one day playing on the main court just like Gauff.

“Hopefully,” she said.

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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter covering Seton Hall and college basketball in New Jersey for NJ Advance Media. You can follow him on Twitter @Subscribe and visit his website at ZAGSBLOG.com.