I got to see the best players in the world every year the week after the U.S. Nationals, which is now known as the US Open, in Los Angeles. That made a huge difference in my life. Billie Jean King More Quotes by Billie Jean King More Quotes From Billie Jean King I have often been asked whether I am a women or an athlete. The question is absurd. Men are not asked that. I am an athlete. I am a women. Billie Jean King athlete leadership sports Pressure is a privilege - it only comes to those who earn it. Billie Jean King privilege tennis pressure Reputation is what others think about you. What's far more important is character, because that is what you think about yourself. Billie Jean King important character thinking Sports teaches you character, it teaches you to play by the rules, it teaches you to know what it feels like to win and lose-it teaches you about life. Billie Jean King success sports character I think self-awareness is probably the most important thing towards being a champion. Billie Jean King motivational-sports women success Champions keep playing until they get it right. Billie Jean King running inspirational sports When you oppress people either by gender, by race, by sexual orientation, when you do that and the doors become ajar, they will fly open and they will come and they have. Billie Jean King race doors people Ever since that day when I was 11 years old, and I wasn't allowed in a photo because I wasn't wearing a tennis skirt, I knew that I wanted to change the sport. Billie Jean King tennis sports years In the seventies we had to make it acceptable for people to accept girls and women as athletes. We had to make it okay for them to be active. Those were much scarier times for females in sports. Billie Jean King girl athlete sports My whole life has been about equal rights and opportunities. For me it really goes back to the health of mind, body and soul. Billie Jean King soul rights opportunity Pressure is a privilege ... it's what you do with it that matters. Billie Jean King badass women boxing Don't let anyone define you. You define yourself. Billie Jean King define-you define-yourself Natural talent only determines the limits of your athletic potential. It's dedication and a willingness to discipline your life that makes you great. Billie Jean King dedication leadership sports You have got to want to be the best before you can even begin to reach for that goal, and you have got to be prepared to sacrifice a lot to get there. Billie Jean King sacrifice goal running The main thing is to care. Care very hard, even if it is only a game you are playing. Billie Jean King educational care games For me, losing a tennis match isn't failure, it's research. Billie Jean King persistence tennis competition Tennis taught me so many lessons in life. One of the things it taught me is that every ball that comes to me, I have to make a decision. I have to accept responsibility for the consequences every time I hit a ball. Billie Jean King life-lesson tennis responsibility 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. 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. Billie Jean King hard-work player thinking Winning is very tangible, it's very exciting, it's very pleasing, but it's momentary. If you can do things that last, that each generation can build upon, then that's when you're cooking. Billie Jean King generations cooking winning It's just really important that we start celebrating our differences. Let's start tolerating first, but then we need to celebrate our differences. Billie Jean King hymns differences important
