Althea gibson timeline althea gibson biography
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The sociological and historical significance of August 25, was enormous for African-Americans in their pursuit of breaking down color lines and paving the way for equal opportunities as Althea Gibson became the first African-American to compete at the U.S. National Championships. Gibson’s inclusion in America’s biggest tennis event wasn’t just about gaining acceptance in the sporting world, but seen as a momentum builder for blacks in the game of life. What Jackie Robinson did for baseball by being in the Brooklyn Dodgers’s starting lineup at first base on April 15, , Althea Gibson did for tennis when she made her historic debut, defeating Barbara Knapp, , , in the first round.
Gibson had a jam-packed eight-year career, with all of her major championships coming from to , when she appeared in a stunning 19 major finals and won 11 titles. Five were in singles: the French in , Wimbledon in and , and the U.S. Nationals in and ; five in women’s doubles: the French , the Australian in , Wimbledon in , , and one in mixed doubles, at the U.S. in After that remarkable run of accomplishment, Gibson became the first African-American to compete on the women’s professional golf tour in
Until Evonne Goolagong, who was from an Australian Aboriginal family, won the French Open and Wimbl
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Althea Gibson
American tennis player (–)
Gibson in | |
Country(sports) | United States |
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Born | ()August 25, [1] Clarendon County, South Carolina, U.S. |
Died | September 28, () (aged76) East Orange, New Jersey, U.S. |
Height | 5ft 11in (m)[2] |
Retired | |
Plays | Right-handed |
Int. Tennis HoF | (member page) |
Careerrecord | 0–0 |
Careertitles | 56[3] |
Highestranking | No. 1 () |
AustralianOpen | F () |
FrenchOpen | W () |
Wimbledon | W (, ) |
US Open | W (, ) |
Careerrecord | 0–0 |
AustralianOpen | W () |
FrenchOpen | W () |
Wimbledon | W (, , ) |
US Open | F (, ) |
AustralianOpen | SF () |
FrenchOpen | QF () |
Wimbledon | F (, , ) |
US Open | W () |
Althea Neale Gibson (August 25, September 28, ) was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In , she became the first African American to win a Grand Slam event (the French Open). The following year she won both Wimbledon and the US Nationals (precursor of the US Open), then won both again in and was voted Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press in both years. In all, she won 11 Grand Slam titles: five
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Althea Gibson
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Who Was Althea Gibson?
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Early Life most recent Career
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After winning a few tournaments hosted by description local lie department, Gi