How Michelle Obama learned to love tennis
September 9, 2011 10:36PM
First lady Michelle Obama hits a tennis ball at a U.S. Open tennis clinic highlighting the importance of physical activity for kids at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, Friday, Sept. 9, 2011. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
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Updated: November 24, 2011 12:24AM
WASHINGTON — First lady Michelle Obama exercises a lot to stay in shape, but her main sport is tennis, a game she is passing on to daughters Sasha and Malia. During a visit to New York on Friday to promote her “Let’s Move” anti-obesity program at the U.S. Open, Mrs. Obama talked about how she came to love the game, even though there were not a lot of tennis courts in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood where she was raised.
Said Mrs. Obama, “Now, I’m probably like the average kid. I didn’t — I grew up in the city, on the South Side. And there were not a lot of tennis courts around. So I really didn’t get exposure to the sport until after law school, when I just sort of picked it up and started playing with some friends. And it’s the kind of sport that you just develop a passion for. And I’m not really good or anything like that — that’s the beauty of tennis. You don’t have to be good to enjoy it, because I love the game and my skills are very questionable.
“But that’s one of the reasons why I introduced the sport to my kids early on, because it’s the kind of thing that — it’s great for kids because it gets you moving. It keeps you focused. You’ve got to move your muscles. You’ve got to be quick. You’ve got to be strong. Gets those arm muscles going, gets your heart pumping. But it’s a sport you can do forever. I mean, that’s one of the beauties. I know people in their 90s that are still playing tennis, and I want to be one of those people. I want my daughters to be some of those people. And I want all kids around the country to have access to opportunities and to get some exposure to sports like tennis so that you guys figure out what your loves are.” Lynn Sweet
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