Billie Jean King quotes: wise famous quotes, sayings and quotations by Billie Jean King

Billie Jean King Famous Quotes & Sayings

Discover top inspirational quotes from Billie Jean King on Wise Famous Quotes.

It's your birthday today, so what would you say, if we turned that frown upside down

Martina and I went through a very bad five years. Everything's very good between us now, but it was a long haul.

In business, everything starts with integrity. Otherwise it falls apart, though it does take time to find out who has integrity.

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

Marriage isn't a 50-50 proposition very often. It's more like 100-0 one moment and 0-100 the next.

Ask Nureyev to stop dancing, ask Sinatra to stop singing, then you can ask me to stop playing.

I would love to be a player today. I had the right personality for it.

I always wanted to help make tennis a team sport.

I always listen, I ask children, I even ask adults in tennis, "What are your children playing?" And most of the time it's not tennis. It's pathetic.

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.

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

I like to see what future generations are thinking about.

Winning comes down to who can execute under pressure.

Being Number One isn't everything to me, but for those few hours on the court it's way ahead of whatever's in second place.

It's important to try to get people to think about women's wellness.

As far as U.S. tennis, we need new stars coming up in the pipeline, but I don't know if we have it.

Martina's gone with people who don't want to be out, and it drives her crazy because she'd rather be open.

Women get the attention when we get into the men's arena, and that's sad.

Don't be afraid to hit the ball.

I knew after my first lesson what I wanted to do with my life.

Some people do have softer boundaries.

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

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

Victory is fleeting. Losing is forever.

Tennis is a perfect combination of violent action taking place in an atmosphere of total tranquillity.

You want people to feel like they belong to something. And not be elitist. You don't want us to be elitist.

Don't go into debt and don't spend a lot. It's not how much money you make, it's how much you spend.

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

My whole life has been about equal rights and opportunities. For me it really goes back to the health of mind, body and soul.

I wanted to use sports for social change.

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

It's just really important that we start celebrating our differences. Let's start tolerating first, but then we need to celebrate our differences.

People say, "Do you know how much a million dollars is?" I don't have a clue. How many Big Macs will it buy me?

Natural talent only determines the limits of your athletic potential. It's dedication and a willingness to discipline your life that makes you great.

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 like entrepreneurial people; I like people who take risks.

If your partner wants to be private, you have to respect that.

That is where the power, opportunity, and choice come from-when you have money. Money equals opportunity. There is no question.

I will tell you King's First Law of Recognition: You never get it when you want it, and then when it comes, you get too much.

The most important words that have helped me in life, when things have gone right or when things have gone wrong are 'accept responsibility.'

Love, light & blessings be On this day I wish to say 'Health & Happiness to come your way' Happy Birthday

Bobby Riggs was one of my heroes. I admired him. That's one of the reasons I beat him - because I respected him.

I think it's impossible to judge whether another person should come out. You just hope they will on their own time and their own terms.

Don't worry about what people say.

Trust and respect is something you earn, not something that is given.

Each point I play is in the now moment. The last point means nothing, the next point means nothing.

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.

A champion is afraid of losing. Everyone else is afraid of winning.

When people tell you not to believe in your dreams, and they say "Why?", say "Why not?

The main thing is not a matter of wanting to win; the main thing is being scared to lose.

Sports are a microcosm of society.

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

Be bold. If you're going to make an error, make a doozy, and don't be afraid to hit the ball.

Create your legacy, and pass the baton.

Champions take responsibility. When the ball is coming over the net, you can be sure I want the ball.

I used to be told if I talked about my sexuality in any way that we wouldn't have a tennis tour.

Our love one's are never gone, they have just popped into another room.

Men still get a lot more opportunity. It is still a big part of the old boy network. They have more companies they can get money from.

Reputation is what others think about you. What's far more important is character, because that is what you think about yourself.

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.

No one changes the world who isn't obsessed.

Don't let anyone define you. You define yourself.

Pressure is a privilege - it only comes to those who earn it.

I try to perfect my strong points and make my weaknesses adequate.

A girl didn't get an athletic scholarship until the fall of 1972 for the very first time.

I have a lot to say, and if I'm not No. 1, I can't say it.

It's fun to meet people from throughout the world who you don't have to explain yourself to.

For me, losing a tennis match isn't failure, it's research.

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

Champions take responsibility.

Female athletes are stereotyped by the general population
and usually as homosexuals.

Champions keep playing until they get it right.

I would just never out anybody. I think everyone has to find it in their own way and their own time.

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

In 1973, a woman could not get a credit card without her husband or father or a male signing off on it.