Billie Jean King was born on November 22, 1943, in Long Beach California. When she was eleven years old she gained an interest in tennis, and decided to save up to by herself a racket. At the age of fourteen, King competed in the Wimbledon tournament in England for the first time, and she can out with a doubles title with Karen Hautze. In 1965 she married Larry King, an attourney, and in 1966 and 1967, she won the Wimbledon singles championship. This year was a very accomplished year for King, because she also won the U.S. Open singles title in New York. In 1971, King became the first woman athlete to win more than $100,000. In 1972, Billie Jean King was featured on Sports Illustrated Magazine as "Sportswoman of the Year" and Sports Magazine made her "Tennis Player of the Year". She then began to start commenting on how low the prize money was for female competitors. She also commented on how women her receiving much less than men for equal ability. Her statements led to an equal prize money at the U.S. Open for both men and women. In September of 1939, she competed against Bobby Riggs in the "Battle of the Sexes" in Houston, Texas and defeated him. Billie Jean King is very significant to today's athletes, for her headstrong attitude and confidence allowed for female athletes to continue to fight for equal pay to male athletes.
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