Leslie Allen (tennis)

Leslie Allen
Country (sports)	United States
Born	March 12, 1957; Cleveland, United States
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) [1]
Turned pro	1977
Retired	1987
Plays	Right-handed [1]
College	USC
Prize money	$330,606
Singles
Career record	12–21
Career titles	1
Highest ranking	No. 17 (February 15, 1981)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	3R (1982)
French Open	4R (1979, 1980, 1981)
Wimbledon	3R (1981)
US Open	3R (1979)
Doubles
Career record	11–15
Career titles	5
Highest ranking	No. 10 (February 16, 1983)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	2R (1982)
French Open	3R (1983, 1984)
Wimbledon	3R (1982, 1984)
US Open	3R (1982, 1983)
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
French Open	F (1983)
Wimbledon	3R (1982)
US Open	2R (1981, 1982)

Leslie Allen (born March 12, 1957) is a retired American professional tennis player.

Unranked in junior tennis, Leslie Allen was an ATA, NCAA & WTA Champion. Allen was a member of the University of Southern California national championship team and in 1977 graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in speech communications.[2] She joined the WTA Tour in 1977 and went on to reach a career high ranking of No. 17 in the world in February 1981.

In 1981, Allen became the first African American woman to win a significant pro tennis tournament since Althea Gibson in 1958 when she won the Avon Championships of Detroit, although Renee Blount is also credited with this feat because she won the Futures of Columbus in 1979.[3][2] Allen qualified for the season-ending 1981 Avon Championships which featured the eight best players of the winter Avon Championships Circuit.[2] She was also a mixed doubles finalist at the 1983 French Open partnering Charles Strode

After retiring from professional tennis, she became a television broadcaster and was also elected to the WTA Board of Directors. Allen founded the Leslie Allen Foundation to introduce young people to the 100+careers behind the scenes in pro tennis. Through the Foundation's Win4Life program students are challenged to use the Win4Life 4D's (Desire, Dedication, Determination, Discipline) to succeed on and off the court. Allen currently works as a real estate agent in New Jersey and is a motivational speaker.

Grand Slam finals

Mixed doubles (1 runner-up)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1983	French Open	Clay	Charles Strode	Barbara Jordan Eliot Teltscher	2–6, 3–6

gollark: This is on my secondary server.

gollark: I just don't like them in general and avoid them wherever it's reasonably practical.

gollark: In this case it's probably sensible to go for Nvidia?

gollark: Yes, that is unfortunately the case a lot.

gollark: AMD have historically provided more computing power/$ for some reason.

References

Emery, David, ed. (1983). Who's Who in International Tennis. London: Sphere. p. 7. ISBN 9780722133200.
Barry Lorge (March 29, 1981). "Designs on Success". The Washington Times.
Djata, Sundiata A. (2006). Blacks at the net: Black achievement in the history of tennis, Volume 1. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2010-01-26.

External links

Leslie Allen at the Women's Tennis Association
Leslie Allen at the International Tennis Federation
Leslie Allen Foundation

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[who-1] Emery, David, ed. (1983). Who's Who in International Tennis. London: Sphere. p. 7. ISBN 9780722133200.

[wapo1981-2] Barry Lorge (March 29, 1981). "Designs on Success". The Washington Times.

[3] Djata, Sundiata A. (2006). Blacks at the net: Black achievement in the history of tennis, Volume 1. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2010-01-26.