For James Blake, playing in the Countrywide Classic has a little extra bit of meaning.

That’s because UCLA is the university that one of his greatest idols, Arthur Ashe, attended.

Ashe’s accomplishments in tennis alone earn him status as a legend.

At UCLA, Ashe won the NCAA individual singles title in 1965 and also led his team to a national championship.

Ashe went on to have a remarkable professional career. He is still the only African American male ever to win a Grand Slam singles title, winning Wimbledon, the Australian Open and the US Open in his 14-year career from 1966 to 1980. He won 34 singles titles in his career and was ranked No. 1 in the world twice for stints in 1968 and 1975.

Ashe was also the first black person ever to be selected for the U.S. Davis Cup team.

But the most impressive thing about Ashe’s career in Blake’s eyes isn’t what he was able to accomplish on the court, but what he did in the face of controversy off of it.

“It always gives me goose bumps to play at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York at the US Open,” Blake said. “Every time I get mentioned in the same breath as him tennis-wise, it’s an honor. It also reminds me that I have a long way to go as a human being, as much of a difference that he made in the world outside of tennis.”

Ashe’s work in human activism and fighting for civil rights is a feature that distinguishes him from other athletes who only perform on the court.

In December of 1992, two months before he died of HIV complications, Ashe founded the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health, which takes on problems with the substandard execution of health care.

Ashe acquired HIV during a blood transfusion he received during heart surgery.

Ashe also was arrested on multiple occasions later in his life for his role in civil rights protests, but his biggest impact in the civil rights arena occurred during his career.

In 1969, Ashe was denied a visa to South Africa on the basis of his race, and thus could not participate in the South African Open. A disheartened Ashe subsequently called for the exclusion of South Africa as a location for professional tennis events and brought attention to South Africa’s racist apartheid policies.

A professional tournament at UCLA is another opportunity to remember Ashe’s legacy.

“Being a great friend and a super admirer of Arthur, it’s a great credit to our tournament (to play at UCLA),” said Jack Kramer, a tennis promoter and three-time champion of the Countrywide Classic himself (1943, ’46, and ’47).

“Nobody made more good contributions to our sport than Arthur.”