Navy corpsman Angelo Anderson was never much of a tennis fan, but he'll be running among the game's greatest players over the next two weeks as he serves as a ballperson for the U.S. Open.
Anderson survived bone-shattering bullet wounds while serving in Afghanistan, and is now able to walk - and throw a ball - with a titanium rod in his leg and a titanium plate in his arm, according to The Associated Press.
On July 2, 2010, Anderson was on patrol with several Marines when he was hit in the leg and arm with rounds from an AK-47:
Anderson had been struck by two bullets. One shattered the femur in his right leg, the other the humerus in his right arm. The orthopedic surgeon had to cut away so much dying tissue that a plastic surgeon needed to perform a skin graft.
Anderson endured numerous surgeries and endless rounds of physical therapy to regain use of his injured limbs.
USTA Military Initiative recently recruited Anderson to audition to be a ballperson for the U.S. Open. Anderson was chosen from a field of roughly 500 applicants. Anderson said of the audition experience:
"You’re never ready enough. Wherever that ball goes, being able to anticipate that it will be in the right place and be there, it’s difficult but also exciting."
Back in 2011, The Virginian-Pilot interviewed Anderson about his upcoming participation in the Wounded Warrior games. I've posted that video below:
