HAMPTON, Va. (March 19, 2026) … The City of Elizabeth, N.J., in partnership with Union County, broke ground on the Arthur Carrington Tennis and Pickleball Complex on March 9, 2026. The outdoor tennis and pickleball complex will eventually be the home of the varsity tennis teams for Elizabeth High School.
 
The courts are named in honor of Hampton tennis great Arthur Carrington. The Elizabeth, N.J., native was the recipient of the first full athletic scholarship offered by Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) in 1965. Under legendary coaches Dr. Herman Neilsen and Dr. Robert Screen, Carrington won the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association singles championship three consecutive years.
 
Carrington competed professionally at the highest levels including the U.S. Open and was a leading competitor in the American Tennis Association (ATA) circuit reaching the national final in 1972. He went on to win the 1973 ATA singles title and was recognized as one of the country's top Black tennis players.
 
He became the first tennis professional head at the Westfield Indoor Tennis Club in Westfield, N.J. and founded the Carrington Tennis Academy in 1980 where he helped train and develop thousands of students over some four decades. He also served as president of the New England Tennis Association (NETA).
 
He co-curated the International Tennis Hall of Fame exhibit "Breaking Barriers: Honoring the ATA and Black Tennis Pioneers" at the 2007 U.S. Open. Helping to preserve the story of Black tennis, he published "Black Tennis: An Archival Collection: 1890-1962", a major contribution to documenting and honoring the pioneers of the sport.