Katrina Adams

Former WTA player Katrina Adams has impacted the sport of tennis at every level from grassroots to global associations for more than 30 years compiling an outstanding track record as a senior executive and Board member leading, innovating, and collaborating with both for profit and nonprofit organizations. Adams learned early on the importance of teamwork while leading her Northwestern University varsity team to a Big Ten Championship in 1986 and winning the 1987 NCAA Doubles Championship with partner Diane Donnelly. Following her success at the collegiate level, Adams competed for 12 years on the WTA Tour attaining a career-high world #67 ranking in singles and world #8 ranking in doubles winning 20 WTA double titles and reaching the quarterfinals or better in doubles at all four Grand Slams. While competing full-time on the WTA Tour, Adams first became involved in the governance of women’s tennis starting in 1990 as a Board member of the WTA Players’ Association serving in various roles for eight years including Treasurer (1994-95), Vice President, (1996- 97), Anti-Doping Committee Chair (1993), and member of the Executive Committee (1994-97). Adams served as the WTA Players’ Association representative on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Board of Directors from 1994 - 96 where she played an active role in the negotiations that led to the historic merger of the WTA Players’ Association and Women’s Tennis Council to create the WTA Tour in 1995. Adams joined the USTA as a National Coach for four years upon her retirement from professional play in 1999 leading to her first appointment to the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Board of Directors in 2005 and culminating with her nomination as USTA Chairman, CEO and President in 2015. Adams has achieved significant “firsts” becoming the first African American, first former player, and first two-term Chairman and President of the USTA from 2015-18. As USTA Chairman and President overseeing more than $300 million in annual revenues, Adams was responsible for balancing the goals and priorities of the USTA, including operating budgets for the 700,000+ member organization and capital expenditures. During her term, major projects were successfully completed including the opening of the 100 court USTA National Campus in Orlando, FL and the strategic transformation of the $600 million USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, NY. With her eye on increasing diversity for the sport of tennis, Adams led an unprecedented outreach effort into underserved communities in an effort to share the sport of tennis with more people. From 2013 through 2018, Adams also represented the US Open in a collective group of Grand Slam Tournament Chairs and Executives comprising the Grand Slam Board. Adams has a deep respect for the history of tennis and believes that much can be learned from the experience of past champions and contributors. She has immersed herself in history for nearly a decade as a member of the Board of Governors of the International Tennis Hall of Fame from 2014-23. She is currently the Chairperson of both the Enshrinement Committee (2022-present) and the Black Tennis History Committee (2020-present). Adams continued to develop her global perspective on the governance and management of both amateur and professional tennis while serving as Vice President of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) from 2015-2023 where she led and assisted efforts to promote the development, growth, and diversity of the sport worldwide. Major accomplishments of the Board during her term included reformatting the Davis Cup competition in 2019 to expand to 30 teams and the “brand” change for Fed Cup to Billie Jean King Cup in 2020. Adams chaired both the Billie Jean King Cup Committee and Advantage All Committee (formerly known as Gender Equality in Tennis Committee.) In September 2023, Adams was elected Honorary Life Vice President of the ITF. While overseeing strategic goals as a board member and leader of both the USTA and ITF, Adams has been responsible for changing the lives of thousands of youths in New York City, as the Executive Director of the Harlem Junior Tennis & Education Program (HJTEP). Through her fundraising efforts, Adams has grown the HJTEP annual budget to approximately $2 million and expanded the HJTEP mission to focus on the whole child including tennis, academics, and health & nutrition programs. The results have been outstanding with impressive retention and college acceptance rates. Adams’s sheer determination and hard work in tennis, leadership and philanthropy has earned her many accolades including being named two times to Adweek’s “Most Powerful Women in Sports” list in 2016 and 2017, Ebony magazine’s “Power 100” list in 2017, and Forbes “Most Powerful Women in Sports” list in 2017 and 2018. Adams has been inducted into eight Halls of Fame including the Boys & Girls Club of America Hall of Fame, ITA Women’s Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame, Black Tennis Hall of Fame, and Northwestern University Hall of Fame, among others who have recognized her extraordinary achievements. Adams recognized her own story could be inspirational for others, and her first-person narrative “Own the Arena” was published by Harper Collins Publishers, Amistad Books in 2021. Her extensive experience in every aspect of the sport of tennis has been recognized by companies in the private sector engaged in tennis and other sports resulting in her appointment as a Board member of Pivotal Acquisition Corp, GSE Worldwide, and Athletes Unlimited and as an Advisory Board Member of Full Court Tennis and Highlight Pro Skydiving Team. In addition, she is a Nominating Committee Member of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority. Adams is a dynamic speaker who is invited to be a keynote speaker by organizations on a regular basis. DEI initiatives are her specialty, focusing on women and diverse groups in leadership roles and being the ‘Only’ one. A native of Chicago, IL, Adams lives in Yonkers, NY.