Ask Nureyev to stop dancing, ask Sinatra to stop singing, then you can ask me to stop playing.
BILLIE JEAN KINGMen can have a huge turnover of sponsorship and still survive a lot better than the women. But the women’s ratings are better, at least at home in the United States than in the men’s tennis.
More Billie Jean King Quotes
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Winning comes down to who can execute under pressure.
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There’s no promises in any entrepreneurial business. You have to really work hard every year and also try to envision where you want to go in the future at the same time.
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Marriage isn’t a 50-50 proposition very often. It’s more like 100-0 one moment and 0-100 the next.
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When we reach the point where the women athletes are getting their pick of dates just as easily as the men athletes, then we’ve really and truly arrived. Parity at last!
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Women’s sports is still in its infancy. The beginning of women’s sports in the United States started in 1972, with the passage of Title 9 for girls to finally get athletic scholarships.
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It’s important to try to get people to think about women’s wellness.
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I think if you’re put on a team as a child, like you are in soccer and other sports, I think the children are going to stay in the sport and have more fun if they’re on a team. They want to play with their friends and have fun.
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Ladies, here’s a hint. If you’re up against a girl with big boobs, bring her to the net and make her hit backhand volleys. That’s the hardest shot for the well-endowed.
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A girl didn’t get an athletic scholarship until the fall of 1972 for the very first time.
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I always think it’s best to pretend you’re in a tenuous position. Just as a player, you always want to stay in the now and work hard but also have goals for the future.
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I like putting money back into what made my life, and tennis has been great to me.
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Pressure is a privilege – it only comes to those who earn it.
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The trouble with being number one in the world – in anything- is that it takes a certain mentality to attain that position, and that is something of a driving, perfectionist attitude, so that once you do achieve number one, you don’t relax and enjoy it.
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Champions adjust and pressure is a privilege.
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At 62 you want to keep moving; that’s important.
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It’s your birthday today, so what would you say, if we turned that frown upside down
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I think one of the concerns, anytime you’re in the human business, like sports, it’s a very high – risk endeavor.
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I knew after my first lesson what I wanted to do with my life.
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I think self-awareness is probably the most important thing towards being a champion.
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It’s really impossible for athletes to grow up. On the one hand, you’re still a child, still playing a game. But on the other hand, you’re a superhuman hero that everyone dreams of being. No wonder we have such a hard time understanding who we are.
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As far as U.S. tennis, we need new stars coming up in the pipeline, but I don’t know if we have it.
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I always respect right off the bat because we are human, but then over time you learn who the person truly is, just like they learn about you.
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That is where the power, opportunity, and choice come from-when you have money. Money equals opportunity. There is no question.
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Hope it works out really well, and you hope that builds a stronger connection over time. You can’t be friends with everybody.
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I like to see what future generations are thinking about.
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Any therapist will tell you that when you’re ready, you will come out. To be outed means you weren’t ready.
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