Obituary: Charles Trippe

The ITF is saddened to learn of the death of former ITF Board Member and Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) President Charles Trippe, who passed away on 22 October aged 81. He served on a host of committees within the sport and was well known and respected by the tennis family across the world.

Graduating with a degree in industrial economics, Trippe represented Great Britain at the 1965 World Student Games in Budapest and played for his county at senior level for 22 years, before joining the LTA Council in 1991. He became LTA Honorary Treasurer in 1998, before serving as LTA President from 2003-05. During this period he oversaw the development of the LTA’s National Tennis Centre in London, which was opened by The Queen in 2007.

From 2005-09, Trippe served on the ITF Board as a Vice President, and was Chair of the ITF Constitutional Committee and ITF Seniors Committee. He went on to become a member of the ITF Davis Cup Committee.

During his two decades on the LTA Council, Trippe also served on a number of other committees and boards across the sport, including the AELTC Committee of Management, Tennis Foundation Board of Trustees and Tennis Europe Veterans Committee.

Trippe’s extensive contributions to the sport saw him named an OBE in the 2003 New Year’s Honours list for services to tennis. In 2015 he received the ITF Award for Services to the Game for an outstanding contribution to tennis over 50 years from player to National Association President.

He is survived by his wife, Helen and daughter Katherine.