Legendary tennis player and women’s rights advocate Billie Jean King became the first female athlete to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, she announced in an Instagram post on Friday.
The award honored the 80-year-old’s trailblazing achievements both on and off the court and recognized a “remarkable life devoted to championing equal rights for all, in sports and in society.”
The bipartisan legislation passed through the US Senate and House of Representatives before President Joe Biden signed it into law on Thursday.
Nine individual athletes, as well as the 1980 US Olympic team, had previously been awarded the Congressional Gold Medal which is Congress’ most prestigious way of recognizing someone’s achievements. Until King, all those individuals had been men with the likes of Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson and Jack Nicklaus all being presented with the award.
During her career, King won 39 grand slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles but she is best remembered for defeating self-proclaimed male chauvinist and former men’s world No. 1 Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes” in 1973.
A longtime advocate for equal rights, King was also instrumental in pushing for equal prize money and forming the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) in 1973 which gave female tennis players “one voice, and power to negotiate,” she told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in 2023.
Outside tennis, she advocated for the passage of Title IX, a law that ensures equal funding for men’s and women’s sports programs in schools and colleges.
“Billie is one of the greatest athletes and ambassadors tennis has ever seen, but her impact off the court is even greater than her performance on it,” Brian Hainline, chairman and president of the USTA, said, per Reuters. “She has broken yet another barrier with this award.”
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