Fern Lee Kellmeyer has been a driving force behind the development of women’s tennis for most of her life. Now the pioneer more familiarly known as “Peachy,” the very first employee and director of the WTA, will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Kellmeyer, the sole inductee in the Contributor Category, joins Recent Player inductee Andre Agassi, whose induction was announced last week. Together, they will be honored on July 9 in Newport, R.I.
“Professional women’s tennis players, young female athletes and the sports world in general should be grateful that Peachy Kellmeyer chose to apply her dedication and leadership skills to women’s tennis, because her tireless work has played a critical role in the growth of the game and in improving rights for female athletes across all sports,” said Hall of Fame chairman Christopher Clouser.
Kellmeyer, 66, a native West Virginian, became involved in the game as a talented junior, went on to star on the collegiate level, and then launched an administrative career. Kellmeyer has led the WTA’s operations, player and tournament relations, and has been at the center of all major policy decisions. Kellmeyer currently serves as WTA operations executive consultant. She’s also a member of the Fed Cup Committee and oversees the WTA’s alumni program.
“This is a tremendous honor,” said Kellmeyer. “I’ve been fortunate to have truly loved my work all my life, and it’s a real joy to see that my efforts have positively impacted women.”
During Kellmeyer’s tenure, prize money on the WTA has increased from $309,000 in ’73 to more than $86 million in ’10, and the number of WTA events has increased from 23 domestic tournaments to 53 events in 33 different countries. Attendance at WTA events has increased with nearly five million in-stadium fans annually, and TV exposure has increased with hundreds of millions of homes receiving more than 6,000 hours of international coverage annually.
Simultaneously with her efforts to build women’s tennis, Kellmeyer has been a tireless fighter for women’s rights in sports. When she was the physical education director at Marymount College in Boca Raton, Fla., in ’66, Kellmeyer spear-headed a lawsuit that ultimately led to the dismantling of a National Education Association rule that had prohibited athletic scholarships being awarded to female athletes at colleges across the nation. The landmark case paved the way for Title IX and contributed greatly to the increase of female athletes in intercollegiate athletics. Additionally, Kellmeyer was a driving force behind the WTA’s campaign to achieve equal prize money for women. In ’09, she was honored with the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Golden Achievement Award for her important contributions to tennis in the field of administration and long outstanding service to the sport.
On court, Kellmeyer began winning junior titles as early as age 11. By the age of 15 she was competing at U.S. Championships. She went on to the University of Miami, where she became the first woman to compete on a D1 men’s team. As an adult, Kellmeyer was ranked nationally in both singles and doubles, and was a competitor at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
