Billie Jean King became the first individual athlete to receive the Congressional Gold Medal

CNN
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Legendary tennis player and women’s rights advocate Billie Jean King became the first individual athlete to receive the Congressional Gold Medal. Announce in an Instagram post on Friday.

The award recognized the 80-year-old’s pioneering achievements on and off the field, and recognized “a remarkable life dedicated to championing equal rights for all, in sport 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, plus the 1980 U.S. Olympic team, have previously received the Congressional Gold Medal, the prestigious method used by Congress to recognize someone’s accomplishments. Before King, all of these individuals were men, and the award had been given to the likes of Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson and Jack Nicklaus.

During her career, King won 39 Grand Slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, but is best remembered for defeating self-proclaimed chauvinist and former men’s world number one Bobby Riggs in the 1973 “Battle of the Sexes”.

A long-time advocate for equal rights, King was also instrumental in pushing for equal prize money and the formation of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) in 1973, which gave female tennis players “one voice and power to negotiate,” she told Christiane Amanpour of CNN in 2023.

Outside of tennis, she has advocated for the passage of Title IX, a law ensuring equal funding for men’s and women’s athletic programs at schools and colleges.

“Billie is one of the greatest athletes and tennis ambassadors of all time, but her impact off the court is greater than her performance on it,” said Brian Heinlein, President of the US Soccer Federation. “You have broken another barrier with this award.”