Billie Jean King: The Ultimate Advocate.

Many know Billie Jean King for her astounding tennis career, and for good reason. During her playing time, Bille Jean won 39 Grand Slam singles, doubles and mixed doubles tennis titles, including a record 20 titles at Wimbledon. Her most anticipated match might have been “The Battle of the Sexes” match against Bobby Riggs in 1973.

Battle of the Sexes

Riggs, once known as the best tennis player of all time, berated the women’s side, insisting that even though he was beyond his prime, he could beat any woman on the tennis court. Riggs has his sights set on King, but Billie Jean refused. Riggs got his matchup with No. 1 ranked Margaret Court, who was enticed by the $10,000 payout. The match became know as the Mother’s Day Massacre, Riggs beat Court 6-2,6-1.

Again Riggs called out King for a match, this time she agreed. The Battle of the Sexes was set for September 20, 1973. Leading up to the match, Riggs offered a slew of sexist remarks. He touted lines such as, “I’ll tell you why I’ll win. She’s a woman and they don’t have the emotional stability” and “women belong in the bedroom and kitchen, in that order.” He also claimed that since women only player 25 percent as well as men, they only deserved 25% of the pay. This game would change the game of tennis, as well as the state of women’s sports, irrevocably. When King faced off against Bobby Riggs, she was out to prove a point; she was out to show what playing like a woman really meant.

King would win the match, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. After the match, Riggs commented that King simply, “played too well” to be beat. The legitimacy of the game, as well as the sincerity of Riggs’ comments against King have come into question over the years. The two eventually forged a friendship that lasted until Riggs’ death in 1995.

Women’s Sports Foundation

The year after her match with Riggs, King founded the Women’s Sports Foundation. The organization was created with the mission of advancing the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity. In 1976, the organization operated with a budget of $5,000 and donated office space. Today, the Women’s Sports Foundation circulates an electronic newsletter to 38,000 members, offers over $8 million in cash scholarships, $42 million in educational services and materials, and celebrated the 30th Annual of National Girls and Women in Sports Day in February.

The Women’s Sports Foundation also provides a space for female athletes to speak about their experiences, as well as be celebrated for their accomplishments. Several prominent names in women’s sports have directly benefitted from, or volunteered their voice to the Women’s Sports Foundation. Current members of the Board of trustees include Angela Ruggerio, Tamika Catchings, Jessica Mendoza and Ilana Kloss.

Serving as a Mentor

Due to her success and fearlessness, she has often supported other female athletes to find their voice and demand more from their sport. In 1996, the US Women’s Soccer Team sought the advice of Billie Jean King, as they sought to negotiate their existing contract. Leading up to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, the Women’s Soccer team wanted to be compensated in the same way the men’s team; bonuses for any medal, not just the gold. Julie Foudy recalls her conversation with King, “ … she was like, ‘Hello? Why are you asking the [U.S Soccer] Federation to solve your problems? You guys have to solve your problems as a team.’” King firmly said, “You just don’t play. That’s the only leverage you have.” The team went on to boycott the first ever Olympics that included Women’s Soccer.

In 2005, Venus Williams began to speak out about the unequal pay between male and female tennis stars. During a Board Meeting at the All England lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, she asked the room to imagine being a young girl who has dedicated herself to tennis, only to finally become a professional and be told, “ … you’re not the same as a boy …”. Venus was referring to the $1.08 million in prize money she received, as opposed to the $1.13 million the Men’s Champion, Andy Roddick received.

The next year, Williams wrote an op-ed for the New York Times of London, again calling out gender inequity; this time at Wimbledon, “I believe that athletes -- especially female athletes in the world's leading sport for women -- should serve as role models. The message I like to convey to women and girls across the globe is that there is no glass ceiling.” Venus continued, citing King as an inspiration, “I intend to keep doing everything I can until Billie Jean's original dream of equality is made real. It's a shame that the name of the greatest tournament in tennis, an event that should be a positive symbol for the sport, is tarnished.”

Since, Venus has continued to be a leader for gender equality in Women’s Tennis. In the ESPN “Venus VS.” documentary, King acknowledged that Williams took a stand that not many athletes, in her opinion, were willing to take at the time, “For Venus to step up, it took a lot of courage … you need someone to be a figurehead for [equality], you need someone to kind of, be the single person, the player, that will stand out and speak up, and that was Venus Williams.”

King was once quoted saying, “I know that when I die, nobody at my funeral will be talking about me. They’ll all just be standing around telling each other where they were the night I beat Bobby Riggs.” For some, that may be true.

However, for girls like me, daring to play sports I was told were designated for boys and men, I see Billie Jean King as a real life superhero. For her extraordinary accomplishments, King has been honored in a number of ways, including the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2009). Although there is still work to do, the acceptance of female athletes has greatly changed within my lifetime, all female athletes have Billie Jean King to thank for that.

Follow Erica Ayala on Twitter @elindsay08