When you consider famous women tennis players, possibly the most historic might be Billie Jean King, who fought relentlessly for equal money for female tennis players. Not only was King a tennis superstar, normzplumbing possessing outstanding talent on the courts, but she was elemental in rallying support for more prize money for women. She gained publicity and humorous fame for her televised matches against male tennis pro Bobby Riggs. She proved victorious in this 1973 “Battle of the Sexes”, thus making her point that women deserved the same prize money as men. Their tournament was viewed by over 50 million people.
Many famous women tennis players have similar backgrounds. Some of their fathers were professional tennis coaches, so they started playing at a very young ages, with some as young as 5. The fruits of their labors resulted in multiple wins in world class tournaments. Some examples of these women include Maria Bueno (Brazil), Tracy Austin (US), Lottie Dod (UK), Mary Pierce (CAN, played for FR), Chris Evert (US), Jennifer Capriati (US), Monica Seles (Hungary/US), and Martina Hingis (Switzerland).
Other women are shining examples of pursuing excellence at an older age. Charlotte Cooper (US) was the oldest player to win at Wimbledon (1908), at age 37. Dorothea Douglass Chambers rose to fame with a seven title win in 1903. After retirement she continued playing doubles until she began coaching.
Women have scored more than point records in tennis. Althea Gibson broke the color barrier in women’s tennis, being the first African-American to win a title at Wimbledon. Lottie Dod, nicknamed “Little Wonder”, is named in the Guinness Book of World Records as “most versatile female athlete”.
Famous women tennis players have long careers. Stefanie Graf was ranked #1 in the Women’s Tennis Association for a record of 377 weeks. In 1999, Graf was named the greatest female tennis player of the 20th Century by the panel of Slims Championships. Martina Navratilova reigned as the #1 female tennis player for forty years, 1965-2005.
Sisters Venus and Serena Williams have both achieved #1 status in the world of ladies tennis. In 2000, Venus defeated Serena at Wimbledon. Maria Sharapova exhibited amazing agility and strength in her games and is known for power plays. Anna Kournikova is also known for her career in modeling. Amelie Mauresmo is famous for strong net play and powerful one-handed backhand strokes. She began playing tennis at age 4. In 2004, tennis class Singapore she made it to the Wimbledon semi-finals, only to lose to Serena Williams.
Other women tennis players of note are Justine Henin-Hardenne and Ana Ivanovic. Henin was World Tennis Association player of the year in 2004 (for 2003), and in 2008 (for 2007). Ivanovic was the top seeded player at the 2008 US Open, and was scheduled to play in the Olympics, but was sidelined due to a thumb injury.
The ruling WTA was formed in Houston TX, in 1973, at the first Virginia Slims tournament, featuring Billie Jean King. Today’s tournaments offer millions of dollars in prizes.
