American fashion designer Vera Wang is a tennis enthusiast and player. The 72 year old trains regularly on her home court in the Southampton, annually attends the US Open and often shares photos of her court activities on Instagram.
Wang was born in New York City in 1949, and her first known athletic endeavor was starting figure skating at age 8. She was a natural, later earning a mention in the “Faces In The Crowd” feature in Sports Illustrated in 1968 for her skating exploits though she did not make the Olympic team.
Wang still enjoys to skate on ice today, she says “skating is multi-dimensional.” After graduating from Sara Lawrence College, Wang became the youngest editor of Vogue Magazine in 1970. After 17 years there she moved on to work for Ralph Lauren in 1987.
Two years later after she resigned from Lauren, Wang became an independent bridal wear desginer, later creating wedding gowns for Chelsea Clinton, Ivanka Trump, Ariana Grande, Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, Victoria Beckham. Then she made skating outfits for Olympic skaters such as Nancy Kerrigan, Michelle Kwan, and Evan Lysacek. She also designed the outfits for the NFL Philadelphia Eagles cheerleaders.
Wang has not been involved in or contributed any creative work to pro tennis, other than showing her presence in attending the US Open and Wimbledon. She was at the famous Federer vs Djokovic 2019 final at Wimbledon and most recently in 2019 at the Roger Federer vs. Sumit Nagal match on Ashe Stadium.
According to her Instagram, she’s on the court just about every day, showing her form, fitness level and friends. She’s also honest about her game: “I played terrible today.”
One of her posts two days ago showed four photos and the caption: “Another day. Another rally. Another look. Another frustrating game.” She is wearing Wilson shoes and using a Wilson Clash racquet. Her outfits appear to be her own creations. The photo shows her follow through on a forehand. Wang looks like an advanced player.
Also two days ago she was on court sitting with two male friends and the caption says: It was OUT!!!
Another recent post showed four photos with a caption: “Heavy hitters.” Though the slim Wang looks to weigh not much more than 100 pounds.
Wang went to Wimbledon in 2019: “The Championships Wimbledon. 2019. FBF I LOVE Tennis. Missing being there.” Her post showed her five wristbands for attending the AELTC.
Her post about Wimbledon elicited a comment from Peggy Vandeweghe: “Next year! I’m upset my niece (Coco) was knocked out in the second round!” Wang replied: “You are a proud aunt x.”
With crowds allowed back this year at US Open. you can be sure Vera Wang will be in the audience, observing and admiring the symmetry and elegance of the final Grand Slam tennis competition of the year.
US Open · Vera Wang · Vogue · Wimbledon
