News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Marigrace Marshall was a standout tennis player for the Sisters Outlaws up to her graduation in 2006.
Now she's made it to the grass courts in London - but not by swinging a racket.
Marshall, now a senior at Pepperdine University in California, is working an internship in sports marketing at the Aegon Tournament at the Queen's Club, the major pre-Wimbledon grass court tourney.
"It's basically the warm-up tournament for all the players who are planning on playing at Wimbledon," she said. "It's been a really great experience."
As an intern, Marshall has worked behind the scenes on tournament organization, handling everything from errands for players to making players' security badges.
"It's surprising how much detail goes into everything and how many people are involved," she said. "It's also been interesting working in London with the British people."
Besides learning the intricacies of staging a major tournament, Marshall has had the chance to meet some of her sports heroes.
"It's been kinda neat to see the players up close and personal," she said. "I've played tennis all my life and I've always been a fan. Some of them are surprisingly nice and some of them are... disappointing."
She said that American James Blake and Scotsman Andy Murray are particularly polite and pleasant.
"I sort of judge them on how they treat the ball girls," Marshall said. "Andy Roddick... he's just not very nice to some of the ball girls. But maybe it's just because he's really focused. He's obviously a very competitive person."
Marshall noted that everyone was disappointed when defending Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal pulled out of the tournament due to a nagging knee problem.
Marshall's work schedule is intense in the morning, but afternoons have been open enough to allow her to watch some of the tennis. And next week, just before she leaves, she'll have a chance to catch an early round match at Wimbledon.
The Sisters grad, daughter of Mark and Cathy Marshall, plans to pursue a career in marketing, probably connected to sports.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
Reader Comments(0)