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Gail FalkenbergAmerican tennis player
Country:
 USA |
Content:
- Gail Falkenberg: A Veteran on the Court
- Falkenberg's Impressive Comeback
- Early Career and Challenges
- Financial Struggles and Coaching Career
- Earning Her Spot and Facing Criticism
- Public Reaction and Support
Gail Falkenberg: A Veteran on the Court
Gail Falkenberg, an American tennis player, may be 69 years old, but she still packs a mean backhand, albeit not with the same force as before. She can't run as fast anymore, and her legs do a little jiggle. She doesn't have a personal coach, nutritionist, or agent. The gap between Falkenberg and, say, Serena Williams, is about the same as the distance from Earth to the Andromeda galaxy. Yet, that didn't stop Falkenberg from winning her opening match in an International Tennis Federation qualifying tournament in 2016.
Falkenberg's Impressive Comeback
At 69, Gail Falkenberg made a remarkable appearance at an ITF25k qualifier in Pelham, Alabama, where she defeated her opponent, who was 47 years her junior, in the first round. This marked Falkenberg's first win since returning to the court in 2011 at the age of 64. Since 2011, she had lost 32 consecutive matches and won only 29 out of 413 games. In comparison, Rosalyn Small, the 22-year-old who lost to Falkenberg in the ITF25k qualifier with scores of 1-6, 0-6, had lost 25 of 25 matches and won just nine out of 306 games. The match between Small and Falkenberg lasted a mere 36 minutes.
Early Career and Challenges
Falkenberg is a self-taught player. She reportedly played tennis and basketball at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the 1960s. "I made the better team in basketball," Falkenberg said. By the age of 38, she was determined to give professional tennis a shot. Falkenberg's most notable victory came in 1988 when she won a qualifying match at the Australian Open but failed to advance to the main draw. Falkenberg also once faced Jennifer Capriati, a former world number one. Falkenberg lost to her, recalling that Capriati was about 13 years old at the time.
Financial Struggles and Coaching Career
Financial difficulties forced Falkenberg to take a break from professional tennis in the past. She stated, "I was self-funded. I ran out of money, so I had to go back to work." Falkenberg coached men's and women's teams at the University of Central Florida. She also coached basketball.
Earning Her Spot and Facing Criticism
Falkenberg earned her spot in the 2016 ITF25k qualifier by winning a match at the U.S. Open National Playoffs organized by the United States Tennis Association (USTA). The win gave her 12 ranking points—enough to rank her 329th on the USTA's open American women's list. Falkenberg could have competed in her age group but chose instead to face the younger generation.
"I like to be around the young kids," she said. "It's harder for the kids to keep up with me than the older people, believe it or not."
Public Reaction and Support
One might expect the public's reaction to a spirited athlete who continues to compete at a high level in her senior years to be universally positive. Surprisingly, some individuals responded to Falkenberg's upcoming match against Taylor Townsend, a six-time ITF tournament winner, with anger.
One of the more offensive comments came from Kathleen Horvath, a former top-10 tennis star. Horvath referred to the match as "Dumb and Dumber," presumably referencing the movie of the same name, and said it was "a joke and a waste of Townsend's time."
"Townsend should just use her right hand for the hell of it," Horvath added, referring to Townsend's left-handed play.
However, Falkenberg has supporters who admire her accomplishments and offer her encouragement.
