Olga Trehub
“I had a talk with my mom a few months before the US Open,” recalls Charlie Cooper, a 17-year-old wheelchair tennis player from La Quinta. He was ranked No. 3 in Juniors Singles and No. 66 in Men’s Singles as of Feb. 3. “She asked, ‘Would you rather have a disability and be where you are now or not have a disability and be a normal person not playing tennis on the tour?’ And I said, ’I'd rather not have a disability.’ It is just so much feeling like I had to fit in with other people. It was all taken away, it felt like. But then [I won] the US Open. My mom asked me [the same thing] the night after I won. I said, ‘No, I'd rather have a disability.’ It was the purpose I found. And I think that was a big changing point in my life.” Cooper won his first Junior Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows last summer and won his second Grand Slam at the 2025 Australian Open in Melbourne in January.
Cooper was born with spina bifida, a condition caused during pregnancy when there is an incomplete closing of the spine and membranes around the spinal cord. He says he counts himself lucky because many people with the disability cannot use their legs. Cooper is mobile, though he cannot run or walk long distances.
Early on, Cooper developed a love of music, focusing on piano and guitar. He had little interest in sports until he was at a music store one day. He ran into an acquaintance with the same disability. “He told me and my mom about a tennis clinic going on with my coach, D’Wayne,” Cooper says. “I tried it out that Friday. I never really knew about adaptive sports before or that you could play professionally. I started with another wheelchair player who was one of the top players in the country at the time named Todd Hanover. Without him, I wouldn't have been able to see the professional side. I was blessed to have him.”
Olga Trehub
Cooper says he was doubly challenged in the beginning because he had never been in a wheelchair. He had to learn not only to get the ball over the net (which discourages about 90% of people who pick up a racquet for the first time) but also how to maneuver a wheelchair quickly around the court to meet return balls. He says one advantage he has as a wheelchair player is mobility in his upper legs; this allows him to rise slightly from his chair and bear down on the ball. For an average-sized guy, he also has impressive upper body strength. I watched Cooper practice one afternoon at Silver Sands Racquet Club with his coach, D’Wayne Begay (who has been with him since the first day he swung a racquet). Cooper hit a number of wicked quick forehand winners. He has power.
It took three or four years of constant practice to get to the point where he could consider competing against other players, according to Cooper. Tournament successes on the local level turned to tournament success on the world stage. Last year was one of the most memorable of his life. Not only did he make the decision last March to turn professional, but he also traveled to Turkey, where he participated in World Team Cup. “It was beautiful,” Cooper says. “I was able to play on the U.S. junior team. We won gold, which was amazing.” He says it was his first victory as a tennis professional. “It sparked my dream to win the US Open in Juniors.”
Cooper’s parents, Begay, and previous coaches came to see him played in the US Open. “I played in three singles matches to win in the final, but in doubles we lost in the final,” he says. “Still, it was amazing to have everyone there to see me win.”
Olga Trehub
Olga Trehub
Olga Trehub
Cooper began high school at Xavier College Preparatory High School in Palm Desert as a freshman. He’s now a junior and takes classes online to accommodate a busy schedule. He’s in Orlando for two weeks of every month, working at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Campus. “They have hundreds of courts,” he says. “For players under 18, we live in a dormitory, and they serve us really great, healthy food. Madison Keys trains there … and so does Ben Shelton. Frances Tiafoe also shows up.”
Olga Trehub
If Cooper sounds a little star-struck, he has every right to be. When he traveled to Melbourne for the recent Australian Open, he found himself in heady company. “I talked to Tommy Haas (former German tennis great and BNP Paribas tournament director, who is interviewed in this issue) about starting a wheelchair tournament at Indian Wells,” he says. “… And in the locker room there was Novak Djokovic’s locker. Being around all that just gives you a stronger sense of professionalism.”
Cooper says he always saw himself as the underdog in past tournaments. But, his continued success on the court caused a steady rise in the rankings. At the Australian Open, he suddenly felt the pressure of being the No. 1 seed – the top player everyone else was gunning for. “I think understanding and trusting the work you’ve done to get to the top – that definitely gave me a stronger belief in myself,” he says.
That belief carried Cooper all the way to the finals and his second Grand Slam victory in a row. It was a spotlight he was able to share with the U.S.’s other Grand Slam winner, Madison Keys, who finally achieved her maiden Slam victory Down Under. And once again, his family, Begay, and his other coaches were all on hand to see him achieve it. “Even my urologist from when I was a kid showed up,” he says, laughing with disbelief.
Cooper does not set any limitations on his ambition. Though he’s ranked only No. 66 in Men’s Singles currently, he hopes to get a wild card to play with the big kids in this year’s US Open. He already won three matches against men and feels ready to move out of Juniors. Though winning more Slams ranks high on his list, he has an even bigger dream. “In the end, it’s to be the best player in the world and to win a Paralympic gold in LA in 2028,” he says.
Olga Trehub
“I think the Olympics is greater than a Slam. Since I started tennis, all I’ve thought about was the gold medal. You can win all the Grand Slams, but there's only one gold medal every four years.”
Begay, who is director of tennis at Silver Sands Racquet Club and has directed many great players in his career, says Cooper has that extra something special that will help him achieve his dreams. “He’s very positive and always gives 100%,” Begay says. “I have no doubt he’ll be the best player in the world.”
And if there’s a goal beyond being the best wheelchair tennis player in the world, it’s to have an effect on kids like himself. “My goal is to show other kids that wheelchair tennis is possible and this could be the dream that they're looking for,” Cooper says. "I think many kids are inside a lot and staying home. I was the same way and kind of scared about going out in public and finding my identity. I think sport[s] can help change that for people.”
