Billie Jean King Quotes That Are tennis, equality and empowerment

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.

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

Champions keep playing until they get it right.

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

Natural talent only determines the limits of your athletic potential.

It's dedication and a willingness to discipline your life that makes you great.

Reputation is what others think about you.

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

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.

My whole life has been about equal rights and opportunities.

For me it really goes back to the health of mind, body and soul.

Pressure is a privilege ... it's what you do with it that matters.

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

No matter how tough, no matter what kind of outside pressure, no matter how many bad breaks along the way, I must keep my sights on the final goal, to win, win, win-and with more love and passion than the world has ever witnessed in any performance.

No one changes the world who isn't obsessed.

Don't worry about what people say.

Ladies, here's a hint. If you're up against a girl with big boobs, bring her to the net and make her hit backhand volleys. That's the hardest shot for the well-endowed.

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

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.

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

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

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.

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

Create your legacy, and pass the baton.

It is very hard to be a female leader. While it is assumed that any man, no matter how tough, has a soft side... and female leader is assumed to be one-dimensional.

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.

Winning comes down to who can execute under pressure.

It's about learning your craft. That's a wonderful thing--especially with today's consumerism and instant gratification. You can'tbuy that. It's about making decisions, corrections, choices. I don't think it's so much about becoming a tennis player. It's about becoming a person.

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

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

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.

Victory is fleeting. Losing is forever.

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

Tennis is a game of angles. You never have time to figure the angles. It's practiced. It's so practiced that it becomes an instinct. You just know where to put the ball. You just feel it. It has been computed into your brain so many times ­ it is there.

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

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

The old boy network is still very strong and very true. Just look at the stock exchange and how many men and women are there. It is still very much run by men.

The trouble with being number one in the world - in anything- is that it takes a certain mentality to attain that position, and that is something of a driving, perfectionist attitude, so that once you do achieve number one, you don't relax and enjoy it.

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

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

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

There is no life for girls in team sports past Little League. I got into tennis when I realized this, and because I thought golf would be too slow for me, and I was too scared to swim.

I've never cared that much for cementing my place in history. Sports is so transitory, so ephemeral. It just seems like so much nonsense comparing me to Helen Wills Moody or Suzanne Lenglen or anybody else from some other time. One lesson you learn from sports is that life goes on without you.

I grew up in team sports. I think I understand the psyche of America. I think when children sign up to play, it's got to be team.

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?

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.

Don't be afraid to hit the ball.

We have, or have had women presidents or prime ministers in Liberia, Chile, Germany, Great Britain...and yet the US of A still hasn't had a women president. It's just beyond my thinking. Look at Congress.

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

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

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.

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