King founded the Women’s Sports Foundation in 1974. She was named one of the “100 Greatest Americans” of the 20th century by Life magazine in 1990. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama. King is the honorary chairman of the foundation’s board of trustees and has served two previous terms on the board as a trustee (1983-87, 1996-97). She previously served on the finance and strategic planning committees. on august 28, 2006, the national tennis center, headquarters of the u. yes open, renamed usta billie jean king national tennis center, in honor of her contributions to tennis, sports, and society both on and off the court, making her the first female tennis player in the us . uu. her woman to have a sports stadium with her name. King received the World Trophy for Women in Sport from the International Olympic Committee in September 2003. She won 71 singles and 21 doubles titles, including a record 20 Wimbledon titles. she remains one of the most illustrious players in tennis history. she achieved the highest ranking in the world five times between 1966 and 1972 and held a top 10 spot for a total of 17 years. In 1973, she defeated Bobby Riggs in straight sets to win the historic “battle of the sexes” match. Upon retiring from the sport in 1983, King remains one of only eight women to have won a singles title at each of the four Grand Slam tournaments. In 1999, King received the Arthur Ashe Award for Valor in recognition of her work for social change and she also became the first woman to receive the NFL Players Association Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1998, she was the first athlete to receive the Elizabeth Blackwell Award, which is given to women whose lives exemplify outstanding service to humanity. In 1997, she received the Flo Hyman Award from the Women’s Sports Foundation. She was honored with the March of Dimes Lifetime Achievement Award for her commitment to helping others in 1994. She was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame (1990), the International Tennis Hall of Fame (1987), and the Hall of Fame international female sports of fame (1980). She was the first woman to be named Sports Illustrated Athlete of the Year, in 1972. King coached the 1996 and 2000 US Olympic gold medal winners. uu. women’s tennis teams and she captained the usa uu. Fed Cup team from 1995 to 1996 and from 1998 to 2003, leading the United States to the title in 1999 and 2000. She co-founded World TeamTennis (WTT) in 1974, which continues today as a 12-team professional league. King has also worked extensively as a commentator on ABC, CBS, CTV, HBO and NBC. founder of the women’s tennis association in 1973, she was its first president from 1973 to 1975 and again from 1980 to 1981. in order to promote equality of life and opportunity for all, she created the billie jean king wtt charitable foundation in 1998 and remains on its board of directors. She provides charitable support to the fight against AIDS, serving as director of both the Elton John AIDS Foundation and the National AIDS Fund.
king is the first woman to have a major sporting venue named in her honor, the usta billie jean king national tennis center in new york.
- first female athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom
- recipient of ncaa president gerald r. ford award
- named by life magazine as one of the “100 most important americans of the 20th century”
- Winner of 39 grand slam singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles, including a record 20 Wimbledon titles
- first woman to have a major sports venue named in her honor
- founder of the women’s sports foundation