By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Friday, March 4, 2022
American Kristie Ahn, a former World No.87 who reached the second week of the US Open in 2019, has officially announced her retirement. The 29-year-old Queens, New York native, took to social media to announce the news.
Ahn was known for her gritty tennis, but also her personality. She became very popular during the pandemic with her TikTok humor, and also featured as a key member of the WTA Player Council.
“Regardless if you started following me from my run in 2019, my Tiktok vids during quarantine, my time at Stanford, or in 2008 where it all really began, I just wanna say thanks - for your support, for your kind words, and for your love,” she wrote on Instagram.”
As a Korean American, Ahn says she was most proud of impacting the Asian community.
“I’ve always dreamed of being able to make an impact on the Asian-American community the same way that the greats have impacted me. I remember watching and cheering for Michael Chang and Michelle Kwan as they worked to dismantle [whether they knew it or not] the stereotype of Asian Americans only being good at school or music - that we didn’t belong in sports. Obviously my accolades don’t remotely match up to theirs, but I’d like to think that I’ve helped chip away at the barrier and add another dimension - finding the balancing act of security [going to college in my case] and pursuing one’s passion.”