Pair of 90-year-olds open competition at Asheville Open Tennis Championship
Just before 9 a.m. on Tuesday, two 90-year-old men stood atop a hill at Aston Park, overlooking the opening day of the 90th Asheville Open Tennis Championships.
With the triple-90 coincidence, the tournament decided to refund their registration fees.
Their names are Richard Stennett and George McCabe, and although they’re among the first to play this week, they’re preparing for their only match of the tournament. They were the only men to register in the 90s-and-over division.
“Tennis extended my life at least by 10 or 15 years,” said McCabe, the No. 1 ranked player in the world in his age division. “It helps really with my diet, my mental health and my conditioning.”
Neither of them grew up with a tennis racquet in their hand, but after picking up the sport later in life, they’ve continued to compete well after most of their peers have called it a career. McCabe, an Ohio resident, began playing when he was 42 years old while stationed in the Philippines for the Navy during the Vietnam War.
“I was playing golf one day, and I said ‘It’s too hot,’ so I picked up a tennis racquet” McCabe said.
Stennett, who lives in WNC, didn’t start until his 50s.
“I was single again at that time and found that tennis might be a good way to socialize a little bit and get to meet somebody,” Stennett said. “And sure enough, the lady I’ve been married to now for 40 years, I met on a tennis court.”
Earlier this year, Stennett’s tennis career nearly ended. After playing three sets on Jan. 3, he got sick the next day. He tested positive for COVID-19, and over the course of the illness, it spread to his lungs and caused him to drop down to 110 pounds.
After four emergency room visits in two months, he started to recover and worked his way back on the court.
“It was a struggle — he’s 90 years old — but he was in such good health that I think that really helped him with his recovery,” said Sue Francisco, Stennett’s daughter. “None of us thought he would ever play tennis again, but he was determined.”
Stennett’s family watched alongside McCabe’s black lab, Renny, as the pair shuffled down for their match. Walking down the steps to the court, McCabe jokingly reminded his competitor not to fall down the stairs.
On the court, they looked more like long-time friends than opponents. In between long rallies and hard earned points, they shook hands and smiled during side switches. After the match ended — with McCabe winning in straight sets — they met in the middle of the court and embraced.
“We’re just fortunate and grateful for the fact that we can still get out there and play,” Stennett said. “It’s a joy, I have fun, even when I come up against a guy like this who hardly wants me to get a game.”
McCabe said recreational racquet sports are a helpful activity for aging people who can do it — even if it’s the less-strenuous alternative, pickleball. Stennett interjected:
“I plan to play pickleball when I get old.”
More: All-WNC boys tennis team: Roberson senior Matthew Peterson caps solid prep career
More: Billie Jean King on BJK Cup in Asheville: 'We should have all of them here'
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: 90-year-olds compete in Asheville Open Tennis Championship
