Jake & Jenson

Jake Van Emburgh weaves across the court on a spring afternoon at the Headington Family Tennis Center, hammering forehand after backhand as the rally heats. Back and forth they go, then finally, Jake strikes: he rockets a forehand winner past his opponent, and pumping his first, looks over to the stands wordlessly.

He's met with his reflection: his brother Jenson raises a fist the same manner. They share a moment, their eyes locked. They don't need words to know what the other is thinking. This time is special.

For the first three years Jake was in Norman, it was rare his younger brother could watch matches in person. Instead, Jenson watched each match from the Van Emburghs' home in Belleair Beach, Florida, glued to his computer and voicing his reactions into the blue glow of the screen.

But this season, Jake's final ride in the Crimson and Cream, has been different. The brothers find themselves at pinnacles of their individual yet intertwined athletic careers, and after years of training thousands of miles apart, are finally reunited for these milestone moments.

Baylor — **Jenson Van Emburgh looks on as Jake plays on court one.**

Tennis is a family affair for the Van Emburghs. Jake and Jenson are the sons of former professional tennis player Greg Van Emburgh, who captured six ATP titles and played in the singles and doubles draws of all four Grand Slams.

Jake, the eldest, picked up a racket at a young age, but Jenson's situation was a bit different. Paralyzed from a spinal cord injury at birth, Jenson has used a wheelchair for most of his life. Though he couldn't play tennis himself, he fell in love with the game early on, too. And through Jake's tennis journey, Jenson found a passion of his own.

There would often be a table inside the clubhouse at Jake's tournaments and players would pass time between matches by trading their rackets for paddles. Jenson joined in and quickly picked up the game.

While Jake was handling opponents outside on the court, Jenson was doing the same inside on the table. The unluckiest of players at these tournaments might have lost to two Van Emburghs in one day. But when Jake would come inside and face Jenson across the table, he came out on top – at least, in those early days.

As Jenson's 10^th birthday approached, he asked his parents for a table at home and they granted his wish. They set it up in the garage where the boys could play for hours on end. At the time, the family lived in Wisconsin and nothing could keep Jake and Jenson from playing, not even snowy winters.

"We had this big kind of open garage when we lived in Wisconsin. We'd play together every night – didn't matter if it was cold, we would play," Jake said.

"We'd play together every night – didn't matter if it was cold, we would play."
-- Jake Van Emburgh

"Jake would try to teach me how to play in the beginning, so I give him credit there," said Jenson. "I didn't have a coach in the beginning so he was my coach teaching me how to hit the ball."

Their time on the table quickly became competitive, and the matches became heated. And soon, Jenson was beating Jake.

"When we first started playing, he would get mad losing to me," Jake remembered.

"He got better super fast. We would play a couple times, then we wouldn't play. We'd play again and it was like, 'wow, you are so much better than you were last time.' And it's been the same for the last few years now. I stand no chance."

Jenson continued to improve and eventually found a coach who helped him take his game to the next level. When he was in sixth grade, he played his first USA Table Tennis sanctioned tournament. Soon after, he connected with the USATT Para Programs Coordinator Jasna Rather, who would become a pivotal player in Jenson's career.

"Jasna really wanted me to play the Mike Dempsey Memorial Table Tennis Championships in San Diego. I was not even prepared at all, but she wanted me to get there and get involved really fast. I played that tournament and kept going."

By the time he was 15, Jenson had qualified for the 2015 Para Pan American Games in Toronto and the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro were within sight.

"I knew Rio was maybe, maybe not a possibility," Jenson said. "I didn't make it, but I was ok with it because I was only 15. But after that, my eyes were on Tokyo 2020."

That new goal would carry him through one of the most challenging experiences of his life.

In July of 2016, Jenson had a spinal fusion surgery – a difficult procedure in itself that quickly became even more complicated by infections that seemed unending. An infection where the incisions had been made in his back was so advanced it required a three-hour washout process to be completely removed.

"The spinal fusion was a scare for all of us," remembered Jake. "It ended up going pretty wrong and he fought it for a long time. I wasn't really home all the time so it was hard for me to grasp what was going on, but all I was trying to grasp was if he was going to be ok, and [the doctors] weren't sure of that for a long time."

The unshakable Jenson returned to the table despite constant fevers and aches that left him exhausted. He had one goal in mind: qualify for Tokyo by winning gold at the 2019 Para Pan American Games in Lima, Peru.

"I played a tournament a month later and won a bronze medal at the US Open in 2016. I was still practicing even though I had an infection in my back. We knew I wasn't right, but I still had that eye on Tokyo that kept me going," said Jenson.

"If I didn't have that goal, I don't know how I would've made it out of that."

By the time the 2019 Para Pan American Games rolled around, Jenson was fully recovered and in top form. He advanced through the draw to the final and once again, the Paralympics were in sight.

Jenson Van Emburgh _ ParaPanAm — ***Jenson Van Emburgh advanced to the final at the 2019 Para Pan American Games.***

But a devastating loss in the championship match provided another obstacle; the silver medal wasn't enough to punch his ticket to Tokyo.

Jenson was ranked 15^th in the world in his disability class at that point in time and just a handful of points away from qualifying. He needed to beat a few more ranked opponents to boost his ranking.

"Jasna Rather told me, 'you have to go to China… you have to go there, play your best and give it your all and you're going to qualify.' So I started training again and went to China and had the tournament of my life," Jenson said. "Jasna knew it was going to happen."

"It was crazy – from having that biggest loss of my career at the Pan American games which really hurt me a lot, to qualifying in a couple of months."
-- Jenson Van Emburgh

"I beat the No. 8 in the world and got bronze, I beat another guy who was around 10 in the world and I got so many points from that tournament. I moved up to No. 9 in the world and qualified for Tokyo.

It was crazy – from having that biggest loss of my career at the Pan American games which really hurt me a lot, to qualifying in a couple of months."

For Jenson, qualifying brought a sense of relief. He had finally achieved his biggest goal, the one that kept him going, physically and mentally, after his surgery and rocky recovery.

"To go from all the doctors being unsure if he's going to be ok to getting back to playing, then in the next few months, qualifying for the Paralympics – nobody does stuff like that," Jake said. "He came out of it and was like, 'let's do this.'"

Now, it's Jenson's career that has brought the brothers together. His partnership with a new coach based in San Antonio led Jenson to train in Big 12 country before he heads to Tokyo.

And it was just his luck – during the final year of Jake's decorated tennis career at Oklahoma, Jenson and the boys' mother, Tracey, have been able to watch Jake play not only in Norman, but at Texas, TCU and now, at Baylor for the Big 12 Tennis Championships.

"Having Jenson here means everything to me. It's my senior year and my last few matches… There's no one else I'd rather share it with. I don't think there's anyone else who wants me to win as much as he does."

The grandstand at the Headington Family Tennis Center is set up so that spectators sit adjacent to court one, where Jake has played singles the majority of the season. It's perfect for Jenson; he watches just yards from the action, and follows his brother as he switches sides during changeovers.

After watching Jake play for nearly a decade, Jenson knows his brother's game inside and out and knows exactly what Jake needs to hear and when he needs to hear it.

"It's really, really special that I can be so close to Jake and interact with him and help him through those close matches. My goal is to keep him calm and level-headed and just pump him up at the right moments. I know when I need to be quiet and let him focus, but I know when I need to be loud and give him my energy."

It's not just in matches that Jenson has provided Jake with perspective.

"Having Jenson here means everything to me. It's my senior year and my last few matches… There's no one else I'd rather share it with."
-- Jake Van Emburgh

Big brother has always looked to little brother for inspiration. Jake has battled injuries throughout his collegiate career, but with Jenson as his role model, has overcome each in turn.

"As a tennis player, you're going to have constant things that go wrong. You're going to have things week to week that are going to bother you and you have to find that fine tune where you can just push through things – I see him do it all the time," said Jake of Jenson.

"I know how strong-willed he is and how hard he works when he finds something he wants. He puts in so many hours and so much work and has overcome so many different injuries. He's just head down, pushing through the whole time ... It's crazy how he's just always wanted to win, always wanted to get better, get more hours in. It makes me really proud."

"I'm one of the happiest people on the planet when I'm watching my brother play," said Jenson. "It's really, really special for me because I went so long without watching him play during his college career.

"Jake's always there for me and helped me with all my challenges and I'm just so proud to have him as my brother. I can't put it into words how great a brother he is."

That spring afternoon has faded into a chilly evening at the Headington Family Tennis Center. As the lights hum to life overhead, Jake's match has come down to a third set tiebreaker and he grinds out point by point.

4-4.

5-4.

5-5.

6-5.

Finally: his opponent errs and it's 7-5. Game, set, match Van Emburgh and the senior has clinched the win for the Sooners.

Jake drops his racket to the ground and throws his hands in the air as his team rushes him, jumping up and down. When their circle disperses, he trots to the net to shake hands with his opponent, then walks to the bench to pick up his tennis bag. Fans come and greet him there, his mom Tracey leading the charge. And while Jake gives high fives and smiles, his racket glimmers under the lights where it landed in his celebration.

Jenson makes his way across the court almost unnoticed, drawn to the black and blue Babolat on the service line. He grabs it and pauses to hold it up to the light before meeting Jake at the bench. He returns the racket to his brother, who embraces him. The two share a moment, wordless again.

Perhaps, in August, this moment will be replayed in Tokyo, with the roles reversed.

Jake Van Emburgh and the Sooners open the Big 12 Men's Tennis Championships on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Waco, Texas, against TCU.

Jenson Van Emburgh's Paralympics pursuit begins Aug. 21 in Tokyo.

Players Mentioned

Jake Van Emburgh

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Jake & Jenson

Related News

Players Mentioned

Jake Van Emburgh

Related Videos

Sponsors