U.S. tennis star James Blake has made light work of his competition through the first three rounds of the 2008 Beijing Olympic games’ bracket, and with good reason – he’s making up for lost time. The formerly dreadlocked Blake, who now sports a clean-shaven head, missed the Athens games in 2004 after breaking his neck on the court, crashing head first into the steel net pole.
“I still say that’s the best thing that happened to me,” James, 28, told Access Hollywood’s Shaun Robinson. “I got to go home and spend time with my father who was fighting, unfortunately, a losing battle with cancer.”
James made an impressive return from the injury, winning the ATP tour’s award for Comeback Player of the Year in 2005. It wasn’t his first comeback — Blake was diagnosed with severe scoliosis at the age of 13, but he still went on to become a tennis pro – and one of the world’s best players.
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“I still remember myself as a five-foot-tall kid in high school, with a back brace on,” he told Shaun. “I had a bunch of girl friends but no actual girlfriends.”
These games aren’t the first time he’s represented the U.S. – James has played on a number of Davis Cup teams, bringing home the trophy for the U.S. with Andy Roddick and the Bryan brothers in 2007, the first U.S. win since 1995.
Giving back any way he can is important to James, who started a cancer research foundation in memory of his late father.
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“On the court makes a difference in my life, but when I can use that to help others it makes my job seem much more meaningful,” he said.
It may take another trademark Blake comeback to knock off his next opponent, however – James is set to face Switzerland’s Roger Federer, the tournament’s top-seeded player and the world number one until his recent unseating by Rafael Nadal. But even scarier for the handsome James may be fending off his female fans.
“Are you comfortable with the term tennis stud?” Shaun asked.
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