August 21, 2025 — On hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Judge Jean Murrell Capers Tennis Courts are, from the left, Ward 9 City Councilman Kevin Conwell, Council President Blaine Griffin, FCTC President George Dixon IV, Mayor Justin Bibb, FCTC member Kali Strickland, Rev. Rodric K. Reid, FCTC 2nd Vice President Robert “Bob” Render III. [Photo // Kevin Chill Heard].
The 79th Tri-City Tennis Tournament will take place at the Judge Jean Murrell Capers Courts in Rockefeller Park over Labor Day weekend, welcoming players from Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit to compete on newly renovated grounds.
Tournament play begins Saturday, August 30, 2025, at 8a and will feature singles, doubles, and mixed doubles competition. The event is part of a long-standing tradition among three of the nation’s historic African American tennis clubs: Cleveland’s Forest City Tennis Club, the Prairie Tennis Club of Chicago, and Detroit’s Motor City Tennis Club.
Founded in 1912, the Forest City Tennis Club is celebrated as the oldest continuously operating black tennis club in the United States. Established at a time when African Americans were excluded from white-only tennis facilities, it quickly became a symbol of pride, resilience, and opportunity. Since 1952, the club has called Rockefeller Park home, where the courts were later renamed in honor of Judge Jean Murrell Capers — a tennis champion, attorney, and the first black woman elected to Cleveland City Council.
[Photo // Kevin Chill Heard]
The Tri-City Tournament has carried this tradition forward for nearly eight decades, rotating between Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit. Beyond the matches themselves, the event has long served as a celebration of competition, fellowship, and cultural heritage across the Midwest.
This year, players and spectators will see a transformed venue thanks to a partnership between the Forest City Tennis Club and the City of Cleveland. Renovations at the Capers Courts included resurfaced courts, new fencing, drainage upgrades, modernized lighting, and ADA accessibility.
“The restoration ensures that these historic courts remain a hub for competition and community for generations to come,” said George Fulton Dixon IV, President of the Forest City Tennis Club. “The Tri-City Tournament is the ideal way to showcase the improvements while honoring the legacy that connects Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit.”
George F. Dixon IV, president of the Forest City Tennis Club
“Cleveland is proud to welcome players and families from across the Midwest to the newly renovated Judge Jean Murrell Capers Courts,” said Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, whose administration advanced the restoration project and made sure the work was completed on time. “This tournament represents not only athletic excellence but a powerful legacy of inclusion, history, and community. We’re honored to help preserve that legacy and invest in the future of this treasured space.”
Public courts have been critical to the growing popularity of the sport as private courts were beyond the reach of many an aspiring talent. Public courts were the developmental space for many future champions, including Arthur Ashe, Althea Gibson, and perhaps most famously, Venus and Serena Williams.
The Rockefeller Courts spawned at least one national champion, native Clevelander Weldon Rogers. While he may never have played at Rockefeller, it's where his father learned the game and introduced it to his younger son. Weldon Rogers went on to integrate the segregated venues of the junior tennis circuit in the 1960s. A few years later he claimed the 1977 Men's Doubles title at the 60th National Championship tournament held by the American Tennis Association in New Orleans, Louisiana.
For more information about this year's Tri-City tourney, visit Forest City's Facebook page.
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Richard Hudlin and Arthur Ashe
