Billie Jean King

Billie Jean King was born in Long Beach, California in 1943. King started playing tennis professionally at a young age and made her Grand Slam debut at the U.S. Championships at age 15 in 1959. She gained international attention two years later when she debuted at Wimbledon, winning a women’s doubles title. King would go on to win a record 20 career titles at Wimbledon, as well as 39 Grand Slam titles. King is the founder of the Women’s Tennis Association and two other women’s tennis foundations. In 1987, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.