Guide To Chicagoland Tennis
Illinois’ Former Top Doc is Top Dog on Tennis Court Story courtesy of Victoria Chiesa/USTA During the COVID-19 crisis, Dr. Ngozi Ezike guided Illinois residents through the COVID-19 pandemic as the state’s director of public health, a near-constant presence by Gov. J. B. Pritzker’s side during his daily media briefings. Ezike, a Harvard University graduate, board-certified internist and pediatrician – and the first Black woman to hold the IDPH top spot – is also an avid tennis player. In fact, in 2021, she became a USTA League national champion. Ezike shared thoughts with the USTA on the pandemic and the benefits of tennis:
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“Obviously, we’ve gone through multiple evolutions of this journey… in the midst of this global pandemic that has thrown us curveball after curveball for the last 19 months. Tennis has served so many purposes. It’s given people an outlet to be able to stay healthy to try to battle all the COVID poundage. It’s been a mental release for me, something to look forward to after grueling days, working seven days a week: carving out two hours for that USTA match where you can just put the phone down, put the computer aside, and just hit that ball, smash the heck out of it.”
