Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King
Billie Jean Kingis an American former World No. 1 professional tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles, including 12 singles, 16 women's doubles, and 11 mixed doubles titles. King won the singles title at the inaugural WTA Tour Championships. King often represented the United States in the Federation Cup and the Wightman Cup. She was a member of the victorious United States team in seven Federation Cups and nine Wightman Cups. For three years, King was the United States'...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionTennis Player
Date of Birth22 November 1943
CityLong Beach, CA
CountryUnited States of America
Each point I play is in the now moment. The last point means nothing, the next point means nothing.
Champions take responsibility. When the ball is coming over the net, you can be sure I want the ball.
In 1973, women got 59 cents on the dollar; now we are getting 74 cents on the dollar. In the area of finance and business, we are at 68 cents on the dollar.
The trouble with being number one in the world - in anything- is that it takes a certain mentality to attain that position, and that is something of a driving, perfectionist attitude, so that once you do achieve number one, you don't relax and enjoy it.
Create your legacy, and pass the baton.
Winning is very tangible, it's very exciting, it's very pleasing, but it's momentary. If you can do things that last, that each generation can build upon, then that's when you're cooking.
There is no life for girls in team sports past Little League. I got into tennis when I realized this, and because I thought golf would be too slow for me, and I was too scared to swim.
I didn't really care if I had a coach that much, me personally, because I was brought up to think for myself.
I hate being called a homosexual because I don't feel that way. It really upsets me ... Being gay can happen in any walk of life, in any world. If you have one gay experience, does that mean you're gay? If you have one heterosexual experience, does that mean you're straight? Life doesn't work quite so cut and dried.
Marriage isn't a 50-50 proposition very often. It's more like 100-0 one moment and 0-100 the next.
The main thing is not a matter of wanting to win; the main thing is being scared to lose.
Any therapist will tell you that when you're ready, you will come out. To be outed means you weren't ready.
When we reach the point where the women athletes are getting their pick of dates just as easily as the men athletes, then we've really and truly arrived. Parity at last!
Martina and I went through a very bad five years. Everything's very good between us now, but it was a long haul.