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 KingRead
Natural talent only determines the limits of your athletic potential. It's dedication and a willingness to discipline your life that makes you great.
Interpretation
Talent sets potential limits, but greatness comes from dedication and discipline.
This quote emphasizes that while natural talent can highlight one's potential in athletics, true greatness is achieved through hard work, dedication, and a disciplined approach to life. It suggests that effort and commitment are the key factors that elevate individuals beyond their inherent abilities.
In practice
Use this quote to inspire athletes during training sessions.
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.
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.
A champion is afraid of losing. Everyone else is afraid of winning.
I feel that tennis is an art form that is capable of moving the players and the audience - at least a knowledgeable audience-in almost sensual ways. When I'm performing at my absolute best, I think that some of the euphoria I feel must be transmitted to the audience.
I like putting money back into what made my life, and tennis has been great to me.
Be bold. If you're going to make an error, make a doozy, and don't be afraid to hit the ball.
Persistence overshadows even talent as the most valuable resource shaping the quality of life.
I can never be safe; I always try and go against the grain. As soon as I accomplish one thing, I just set a higher goal. That's how I've gotten to where I am.
If you're willing to put yourself and your dreams on the line, at the very least you'll discover an inner strength you may not have known existed.
But yeah, Ann [Trason] insisted, running was romantic; and no, of course her friends didn't get it because they'd never broken through. For them, running was a miserable two miles motivated solely by size 6 jeans: get on the scale, get depressed, get your headphones on, and get it over with. But you can't muscle through a five-hour run that way; you have to relax into it, like easing your body into a hot bath, until it no longer resists the shock and begins to enjoy it.
Someone like Jessica Ennis-Hill having her first baby then bouncing back to become world champion in the space of the year. I maybe wouldn't have appreciated just how big an achievement that was until I had my own child. It's an incredible thing.
The great opportunity belongs to him who can see it, to him who can grasp it. The better part of your chance is right inside of you.
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