black tennis star barrier breaker paved way tennis greats Venus Serena Williams

~~August 25, 2014~~

Althea Gibson’s 87th birthday

Tennis Legend Althea Gibson Honored with Animated Google Doodle

Gibson was the first African-American to win the U.S. Nationals and Wimbledon tennis championships.

Monday’s Google Doodle, August 25, 2014, pays tribute to black tennis star and barrier breaker Althea Gibson, who paved the way for tennis greats including Venus and Serena Williams.

Gibson, who was born on Aug. 25, 1927, was the first black person to take the title at Wimbledon and the U.S. Nationals. The Harlem-raised Gibson was also the first African-American named the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year in 1957; she won again in 1958.

~Childhood in Harlem~

Althea Gibson was born in Silver, South Carolina, on August 25, 1927. She was the first of Daniel and Anna Washington Gibson’s five children. Her parents worked on a cotton farm, but when she was three years old the family moved north to the Harlem area of New York City. Gibson caused a lot of problems as a child and often missed school. Her father was very strict with her on these occasions, but he also taught her to box, a skill that he figured would come in handy in the rough neighborhood the Gibson family lived in.

~Tennis success~

When Gibson was ten years old, she became involved with the Police Athletic League (PAL) movement known as “play streets.” PAL was an attempt to help troubled children establish work habits they would need later in life. In 1940 PAL promoted paddle ball (a game similar to handball except that it is played using a wooden racket) competitions in Harlem. After three summers of playing the game Gibson was so good that the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club sponsored her to learn the game of tennis and proper social behavior.

TIME wrote of Gibson in 1957: “Lean, tall and well-muscled (5 ft. 10½, 144 Ibs.), Althea Gibson is not the most graceful figure on the courts, and her game is not the most stylish. She is apt to flail with more than the usual frenzy, and she often relies on ‘auxiliary shots’ (e.g., the chop and slice). But her tennis has a champion’s unmistakable power and drive.”

Gibson died in October 2003 in East Orange, N.J.

On Monday, August 25th, Google revealed an animated Google Doodle dedicated to tennis champion Althea Gibson (August 25, 1927 – September 28, 2003) for what would have been her 87th birthday.

Often compared to Jackie Robinson, Gibson was the first black athlete to cross the color barrier in international tennis, and she was also a professional golfer.

“She is one of the greatest players who ever lived,” said Robert Ryland, a tennis contemporary and former coach of Venus and Serena Williams. “Martina couldn’t touch her. I think she’d beat the Williams sisters.”

Known for her grace and athleticism, in 1956 she became the first person of color to win a Grand Slam title (the French Open). That following year she won both Wimbledon and the U.S. Nationals (precursor of the U.S. Open), then won both again in 1958, and was voted Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press in both years.

~~SOURCES~~

https://www.google.com/doodles/althea-gibsons-87th-birthday

http://www.sinuousmag.com/2014/08/althea-gibson-google-doodle/

http://www.notablebiographies.com/Fi-Gi/Gibson-Althea.html

~~Althea Gibson Google Doodle~~

~~Published on Aug 25, 2014~~

Google shows a Doodle for Althea Gibson’s 87th Birthday on 25th August, 2014.

Althea Gibson was an American tennis player and professional golfer. She was the first black athlete to cross the color line of international tennis.

Gibson was born on August 25, 1927 in South Carolina.

In 1956 she became the first person of color to win a Grand Slam title (the French Open). Gibson Won 5 Grand Slam Singles Titles & 6 Grand Slam Doubles Titles.

She Was Inducted Into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971.