CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) presented the Tim Heckler USPTA Hall of Fame Award to Dr. Jack Groppel, the head coach for the Illinois men’s tennis team from 1978-81.
Dr. Groppel is considered an internationally recognized authority and pioneer in the science of human performance. His research has included performance analyses of over 25 sports, having successfully worked with numerous world-class athletes.
His scientific findings have appeared in numerous peer-reviewed journals, and he also served as an instruction editor to Tennis Magazine and had a column entitled, “Ask the Professor” in USPTA’s ADDvantage magazine that ran for 25 years. As a motivating and highly entertaining speaker, Dr. Groppel has spoken at thousands of functions on six continents for many different audiences.
As a professional tennis coach, Dr. Groppel is a certified Master Professional of the USPTA. In 1987, the same year he became a Master Professional, Dr. Groppel was named the USPTA Professional of the Year.
From there, he continued to thrive within the profession. He dedicated 16 years of service to the USTA as Chairman of the National Sport Science Committee. He received the 1993 International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Educational Merit Award and was inducted into the Midwest USPTA Hall of Fame in 1998.
In 2007, Dr. Groppel was appointed to the USPTA National Board of Directors as a Vice President. He has continuously gone above and beyond for the tennis industry.
“It’s easy to read Jack’s bio and see he is an extremely accomplished man” former assistant coach Marcos Asse said. “When you talk with Jack, or even spend some time in the same room as him, his energetic exuberance and zest for life comes across just by looking into his eyes. This is what makes Jack special. He is an…
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