Billie Jean King, 2023
Former world No. 1 tennis player
48 x 60 inches
Oil on canvas
“Natural talent only determines the limits of your athletic potential. It’s dedication and a willingness to discipline your life that makes you great.”
—Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles and is regarded by many as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
Among her many accolades and achievements, in 1972, she was the first woman, to appear alongside John Wooden on the cover of Sports Illustrated for the Sportsman of the Year award. In 1973, at age 29, she won the "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs. In 1975 she was one of Time magazine’s Persons of the Year and she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1990. 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 and 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. She has also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
King became the first woman athlete to earn over US$100,000 in prize money; however, inequalities continued. King won the US Open in 1972 but received US$15,000 less than the men's champion Ilie Năstase. She stated that she would not play the next year if the prize money was not equal. In 1973, the US Open became the first major tournament to offer equal prize money for men and women.
Building on her tennis stardom to create social change, Billie Jean King has elevated the self-esteem of girls and women through her lifelong struggle for equality in the sports world. She was also the first prominent female professional athlete to come out as gay and has raised large sums to fight AIDS, contributed funds to combat homophobia in schools, and supported efforts to stem gay and lesbian teenage suicide rates. She and her wife Ilona Kloss have been in a relationship for over 40 years.