BEHIND THE BANNER - February 2022 by VisitDallas

BEHIND THE BANNER

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inaugural dallas open surpasses expectations By Sam Weiger

Dallas made it clear that it is determined to keep world-class tennis around indefinitely. Dallas Open and SMU staff worked diligently to deliver an extraordinary fan experience, while major partner John Isner spearheaded philanthropic efforts and helped develop a high-quality player field. The joint action helped attract approximately 20,000 fans and a handful of famous celebrities to the event. The Dallas Open enhanced the traditional tennis tournament atmosphere by treating ticket holders to an interactive experience. The tournament organized many special events, including a session

for fans to demo tennis rackets on-site with a member of the SMU men’s tennis team as their hitting partner. Another special event, College Night, gave several of SMU’s players an invaluable opportunity to compete on the ATP Tour for the first time ever. The Dallas Open is the newest tournament to the ATP Tour, a circuit that presents the highest level of tennis in the world. Throughout the week, the Dallas Open made history by becoming the first ATP Tour event to provide waiter and waitress service to front row spectators. The event also offered a collection of amenities

DALLAS OPEN CHAMPION, REILLY OPELKA

for everyone in its Hospitality Village, including live music and a tennis video game. Tournament staff constructed two practice courts adjacent to Hospitality Village to allow fans a courtside view of players’ practice sessions. Once fans took their seats, staff kept them engaged with giveaways, trivia and other activities that most ATP tournaments do not incorporate into matches. “Giving a college player the opportunity to play

against a professional player is something that never happens in any other college sports,” said Peter Lebedevs, Tournament Director of the Dallas Open. The crowd was completely behind the SMU players, and it felt like an amazing atmosphere out there. What’s also different about the Dallas Open is fans getting to sit right behind the players as they’re practicing. They got to sit behind the serves of Reilly Opelka and John Isner at 135 mph.”

John Isner, a renowned veteran tennis player and Dallas Open ambassador, spent many months donating tournament proceeds to underprivileged families and promoting the event to fans around the world. Isner also promoted the tournament to his friends on tour and helped bring in the two best American players in the world, Taylor Fritz and Reilly Opelka. Because Isner lives within walking distance of SMU, he plans to continue his work with the Dallas Open in the future.

GF Sports & Entertainment designed an intimate tournament site that kept everyone within 60 feet of the show courts. The Dallas Open captivated many with its red and blue courts and became the only ATP Tour event to display those colors. “Dallas was honored to host the first ATP Dallas Open at the SMU Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex,” said Monica Paul, Executive Director of the Dallas Sports Commission. “From the philanthropic integration for our community to the quality level of athletes to the $8 million economic impact, we’re thrilled with the first year’s success for this event. This tournament was an incredible opportunity for sports fans, and we can’t wait to see the growth of tennis in Dallas for years to come.”

“I realize that there are so many people and families out there that aren’t as fortunate as mine, so I want to help out as much as I possibly can,” said Isner. As for Right out of the gate, promoting the Dallas’ underrated event, my sales tennis fanbase and some pitch was simply unexpected supporters that Dallas is an stunned Dallas Open amazing town, staff. The initial release JOHN ISNER, Veteran Tennis Player, Dallas Open Ambassador and I guarantee if of weekend packages you come to this sold out in less than 24 tournament, you’re hours, and premium going to have a tickets disappeared great time. Dallas has so much to offer, and it makes almost instantly as well. Among the ticket-holders sense to have a tournament here, so I’ve been trying were tennis icon Naomi Osaka and former U.S. to promote the tournament as much as I possibly President George W. Bush. Well-known ESPN tennis can. I want to continue helping the Dallas Open in commentators Chris Evert and Patrick McEnroe any aspect that I can going forward.” tuned in to the event and praised its vibrant atmosphere. Noteworthy tennis stars Nick Kyrgios, The Dallas Open also sold itself by providing Grigor Dimitrov and Kei Nishikori had committed the only indoor ATP Tour tournament venue in to playing the Dallas Open before dropping out for the country. Many players from all parts of the various reasons. It is likely that fans will see one of globe flock to indoor courts to escape sun, wind these three entertainers and other exciting names at and potential storm interference. The enclosed next year’s contest. environment allows for more aggressive shotmaking, which enhances the event for fans. To further amplify the experience for fans and players,

Dallas is an amazing town, and I guarantee if you come to this tournament, you’re going to have a great time.

BEHIND THE BANNER

FEBRUARY 2022 EDITION

Black Excellence in Sports Journalism By Jasmin Wells

Black History Month. It’s a time to reflect. A time to recognize the achievements and contributions of African Americans to this great nation. It’s a time to pause and be a witness of how far we have come, but also recognize what still must change. Most importantly, it’s a time to shed light on the people and organizations that have pioneered to create prominent change. Black history month was first conceptualized as Negro History Week, in an effort to encourage people of all ethnic and social backgrounds to discuss the Black Experience. Thanks in part to the civil-rights movement, Negro History Week began to be celebrated across the country by mayors and college campuses, eventually being recognized in 1976 by President Gerald Ford as Black History Month. President Ford states the importance for Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

pressure on major league owners to integrate their teams. Today, the amount of African American sport journalists remains low. According to the 2021 Sports Media Racial and Gender Report Card: Associated Press Sports Editors report, 79.2% of the sports editors were white with 83.3% being men. The report also detailed that 77.1% of sport reporters were white, with 85.6% being men. While we recognize that there is a long way to go in achieving true diversity, comparing the statistics to the 2018 study shows that there has been improvement. The percentage of Black representation rose 5% in the positions of sports editors, columnists, and reports. Women representation also rose by in the positions of sports editors, columnist, and reports, by 6%, 1.2%, and 2.9%, respectively. This month the Dallas Sports Commission recognizes and celebrates the accomplishments of black journalists throughout the DFW Metroplex.

As we reflect, we bear witness the great strides made in breaking the glass ceiling of professional sports by black athletes such as Jackie Robinson and Kenny Washington. While diversity and inclusion are clearly seen on the court and field, there seems to be an unparallel reflection into the press box. In the 1940s, segregation contributed a large disparity of black journalists to that of their white counterparts . Only a handful of African Americans were given the opportunity to report on major league games, but were still not welcome into press boxes. Pioneers in the industry, like Wendell Smith and Sam Lacy, pushed the envelope of integration by putting

Newy Scruggs , Emmy Award winning sportscaster, has been with NBC 5 since 2001 and currently serves as their Sport Director. He is also host to the weekly NBC segment, Out of Bounds, where he and Dallas Cowboys legend Drew Pearson break down every aspect of America’s Team. Prior to his position, Scruggs has broadcasted in cities from Myrtle Beach and Austin to Cleveland and Los Angeles. Scruggs has always been socially aware of the world that we live in, crediting his parents for this outlook. His father, Albert Scruggs Jr., played a central role in the civil rights movement, marching with leaders such as Martin Luther King in freedom walks and participating in the children’s crusade.

Dorothy Gentry is a seasoned freelance journalist, being in the industry for over 25 years. She has written for notable articles such as The Athletic, Women’s Hoops by Slam, HoopsHabit, Texas Metro News, The NY Times, and NextHoops. Gentry frequently covers the Dallas Stars, Dallas Mavericks, and Dallas Wings. She currently serves on the board for the DFW Association of Black Journalists. Jean-Jacques Taylor, a Dallas native, is an awardwinning journalist who has covered the Dallas Cowboys and the NFL for 25 years. He began his career at the Dallas Morning News working his way from HS writer to Cowboys beat report. He covered the beat for 11 years, being one of the longest tenures at the paper. He was the only person in Dallas Morning News history to ascent from an intern to a general sport columnist. He later transitioned into the role as columnist for ESPN, becoming the 5th African American to host a daily radio show. Today, Taylor is President of JJT Media Group and Cohost of JaM Session - Newy Scruggs, podcasts. DFW Sportscaster

of Dale Hansen. Trahan has covered title runs from the Rangers and Mavericks, including the Mav’s championship win in 2011. Stephen Wright has been with KXAS/NBC5 since 1998, working to the role of News Operations Manager in overseeing the editorial gathering process for news and sports. He is a past president of the DFW Association of Black Journalists, holding the position from 2008 to 2014. Wright has led and mentored journalists for over 20 years to increase the efforts and actions regarding diversity and inclusion.

“Since 2000, I have been a main anchor in DFW and to be a sports anchor for that long on the sports side, I don’t know how many people have done that. I see myself as someone who represents many and feel the responsibility to do my job to point that it can help other people of color attain these positions.

Joe Trahan is a multiEmmy award winning sports reporter. He has won fifteen Lone Star Emmy Awards and two regional Edward R. Murrow Awards in 2008 and 2014. His sports career began in Charleston, SC with WCBD-TV, leading him to New Orleans in serving as the sports director at WVUETV. Trahan has recently risen to the role as the main sports anchor for WFAA, following the retirement

Clarence E. Hill Jr. has been a columnist/ beat writer with the Star telegram for over 25 years, covering the ins and outs of the Dallas Cowboys. He has covered the Cowboys through two playoff wins, six coaches, and the final four years of Troy Aikman’s playing career. He currently serves as the VP of Print for the DFW Association of Black Journalists.

Keith Russell, morning news and former sports anchor, has held a passion in ¬covering sports for nearly 30 years. Prior to joining the CBS11 team in 2015, Russell served as a sports contributor and sports anchor for ESPN. Russell has been a part of the official Cowboys station in conducting numerous stories and interviews. He also has been part of the Cowboys Gameday Pregame and post-game reports. BEHIND THE BANNER

FEBRUARY 2022 EDITION

the pros at home in march SUN

MON

TUE 1

WED 2

7:30 PM

VS. LA 7:30 PM

VS. UTA 13

FRI

S AT

7:30 PM

VS. GSW

VS. NYK 15

7:30 PM

THU

7:00 PM

VS. UTA 20

7:30 PM

VS. MIN 27

6:30 PM

VS. UTA

BEHIND THE BANNER

7:30 PM

VS. EDM 29

6:30 PM

7:30 PM

VS. HOU 30

VS. LAL FEBRUARY 2022 EDITION

7:30 PM

VS. VAN 31

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