Billie Jean King | |
|---|---|
 King in September 2011 | |
| Born | Billie Jean Moffitt November 22, 1943 Long Beach, California, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) |
| Spouses | |
Tennis career | |
| Country (sports) |  United States |
| Turned pro | 1968 |
| Retired | 1990 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| College | California State University, Los Angeles |
| Prize money | $1,966,487[1] |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1987 (member page) |
| Official website | billiejeanking.com |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 695–155 (81.76%) |
| Career titles | 129 (67 during open era) |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (1966, Lance Tingay) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1968) |
| French Open | W (1972) |
| Wimbledon | W (1966, 1967, 1968, 1972, 1973, 1975) |
| US Open | W (1967, 1971, 1972, 1974) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 87–37 (as shown on WTA website)[1] |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (1967) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | F (1965, 1969) |
| French Open | W (1972) |
| Wimbledon | W (1961, 1962, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1979) |
| US Open | W (1964, 1967, 1974, 1978, 1980) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | W (1974, 1976, 1978, 1980) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career titles | 11 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1968) |
| French Open | W (1967, 1970) |
| Wimbledon | W (1967, 1971, 1973, 1974) |
| US Open | W (1967, 1971, 1973, 1976) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | W (1963, 1966, 1967, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979) (as player) W (1976, 1996, 1999, 2000) (as captain) |
| Coaching career | |
Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943), also known as BJK, is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King was a member of the victorious United States team in seven Federation Cups and nine Wightman Cups. For three years, she was the U.S. captain in the Federation Cup.
King is an advocate of gender equality and has long been a pioneer for equality and social justice.[2] In 1973, at the age of 29, she famously won the "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs.[3] King was also the founder of the Women's Tennis Association and the Women's Sports Foundation. She was instrumental in persuading cigarette brand Virginia Slims to sponsor women's tennis in the 1970s and went on to serve on the board of their parent company Philip Morris in the 2000s.
Regarded by many as one of the greatest tennis players of all time,[4][5][6][7] King was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987. The Fed Cup Award of Excellence was bestowed on her in 2010. In 1972, she was the joint winner, with John Wooden, of the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award and was one of the Time Persons of the Year in 1975. She has also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year lifetime achievement award. She was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1990, and in 2006, the USTA National Tennis Center in New York City was renamed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. In 2018, she won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2020, the Federation Cup was renamed the Billie Jean King Cup in her honor. In 2022, she was awarded the French Legion of Honour, and in 2024, she received a Congressional Gold Medal. On October 7, 2024, King was named the Grand Marshal of the 2025 Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game.
- ^ a b "Women's Tennis Association biography of Billie Jean King". Sonyericssonwtatour.com. Archived from the original on July 5, 2009. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
- ^ King, Billie Jean. "Billie Jean King – Speaker". TED.
- ^ Deixlia. "Billie Jean King in 1973 Wimbledon match against Bobby Riggs". ElasticReviews.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2021. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
- ^ Jason Le Miere (August 28, 2015). "Top 10 Women's Tennis Players Of All-Time: Where Does Serena Williams Rank On List Of Greatest Ever?". International Business Times. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
- ^ "Serena Williams: Is she your greatest female player of the Open era?". BBC Sport. January 28, 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
- ^ "Who Is the Greatest Female Player Ever?". Archived from the original on December 28, 2008.
- ^ "International Tennis Hall of Fame biography of Billie Jean Moffitt King". Archived from the original on November 19, 2006. Retrieved February 15, 2007.