Gladiator Tennis Named USTA Chicago LaMont Bryant Champion of the Game Award Recipient
Chicago-based flex tennis league recognized for growing recreational tennis across the region
Gladiator Tennis has been selected as a recipient of the USTA Chicago District's LaMont Bryant Champion of the Game Award, given to businesses and organizations that have gone beyond their own walls to grow tennis in the broader community.
The league was founded in Chicago in 2007. It now serves more than 7,000 players across nine markets, including Chicagoland, St. Louis, Miami/Fort Lauderdale, Denver, Milwaukee, and The Palm Beaches. Chicago remains the foundation.
"We built Gladiator around the belief that recreational tennis deserves to be taken seriously. That the matches you play on a public court on a Tuesday night should count for something real. USTA Chicago has been a genuine partner in that work, and this recognition means a lot coming from them. This award belongs to the Chicago tennis community."
— J Schwan, CEO, Gladiator Tennis
Leslie LaMont Bryant, known to generations of Chicago youth simply as Coach Bryant, was an extraordinary man who dedicated his life to uplifting young people through tennis, education, and mentorship. He was the founder and CEO Emeritus of Love To Serve, Inc., a Chicago-based nonprofit, and a tireless advocate for racial equity and youth development in under-resourced communities.
Coach Bryant believed that every child deserves a chance to succeed, and he spent decades making that belief real on tennis courts across Chicago. He mentored hundreds of student-athletes, expanded access to the sport in communities that had been overlooked, and built a legacy that continues through every program Love To Serve runs today.
He passed away on November 24, 2024. The award that bears his name exists because of the standard he set: consistent, sustained, unglamorous work to make tennis more accessible for everyone.
To receive an award named for Coach Bryant is something we hold with real care and humility.
None of this happens without the players who have kept coming back. Many have been in the league for over a decade.
Learn more about everything Gladiator Tennis is doing for the community or register for a league at GladiatorTennis.com.
