Explore Quotes by Billie Jean King

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.

Men 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.

In 1973, women got 59 cents on the dollar; now we are getting 74 cents on the dollar. In the area of finance and business, we are at 68 cents on the dollar.

I was always in the tennis business-from 1968. I was in tournaments and also on World Team Tennis teams as well.

I like putting money back into what made my life, and tennis has been great to me.

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.

I didn't really care if I had a coach that much, me personally, because I was brought up to think for myself.

I always wanted to help make tennis a team sport.

At 62 you want to keep moving; that's important.

I think younger players probably just think they are who they are-they don't think about coming out. Unless you're number one in the world, nobody cares, usually.

Any therapist will tell you that when you're ready, you will come out. To be outed means you weren't ready.

I always liked co-ed events best so we have two men and two women on each team.

When I was outed, it was like, That's done.

I wanted to use sports for social change.

I like entrepreneurial people; I like people who take risks.

When they take surveys of women in business, of the Fortune 500, the successful women, 80% of them, say they were in sports as a young woman.

I love to promote our sport. I love grass-roots tennis. I love coaching. I love all parts of the sport. I love the business side.

I think self-awareness is probably the most important thing towards being a champion.

Sports are a microcosm of society.

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.

The main thing is to care. Care very hard, even if it is only a game you are playing.