PARIS – 1983 French Open winner Yannick Noah has been appointed as the new head of French para tennis from next year.
The French Tennis Federation said in a statement Thursday that Noah will be responsible for organizing tennis activities for people in wheelchairs, the blind, the deaf and hard of hearing.
Noah’s first taste of para-tennis came last summer when he led the French men’s wheelchair tennis team at the Paris Paralympic Games.
“His main role will be to continue to shape the para-tennis department by leading training and ‘advanced’ strategies and supporting the development of all para-tennis activities across the country,” the French Tennis Federation said.
A celebrity in his home country, Noah is the last player from France to win a Grand Slam singles title, reaching a career high of No. 3 in the ATP Rankings in 1986. He later won the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup for his country. As captain, he led both teams to wins.
He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005.
Noah said he was “excited” to be appointed to lead “a new mission that is especially close to my heart.”
“I had an incredible human experience working with the French wheelchair tennis team members at the Paris Paralympics, and I didn’t want this amazing story to end here,” he said.
