Women’s tennis legend Gibson overcomes racial discrimination for the first time over the ‘color line’ and wins the first black
major tournament in 1956 . Reservation for enthronement of ‘Empress’
Last week, a new milestone was set in the Super Bowl, the final of the American Professional Ball (NFL). The first black quarterback showdown staged in Super Bowl 57. In the NFL, physique and stamina are necessary and sufficient conditions. That’s why black players are more than half, but black quarterbacks are still a minority.
Women’s tennis sisters Venus (43) and Serena (42, USA) staged the first major match between African Americans in the 2001 U.S. Open final 22 years ago. In major tournaments alone, the sisters clashed nine times.
Among the popular professional sports, women’s tennis is a sport in which blacks stood out early. Alcia Gibson (1927-2003, USA) is remembered as the first black star to cross the wall of racism in sports. Gibson reached the top of the French Open in 1956, becoming the first African-American to win a major tournament. Gibson achieved the Career Grand Slam the following year by winning Wimbledon, the Australian Open, and the US Open, which are also major tournaments. In 1958, he won two consecutive titles at Wimbledon and the US Open. He won five majors in women’s doubles and one major in mixed doubles.
Asher Ashe (1943-1993, USA) is the only black player to win the US Open (1968), Australian Open (1970), and Wimbledon (1975) in men’s tennis. Gibson won his first major tournament 12 years ahead of Ash.
Gibson’s athletic ability was excellent, and in 1964, at the age of 37, she debuted on the LPGA Tour. The first black player in LPGA Tour history. Although Gibson never won a championship on the LPGA Tour, he played well into 1978 and set a great example.
40 years after Gibson’s appearance, a great black player appeared. He is the Williams sister. Venus reported her first singles championship in 1997 when she was 17 years old and Serena in 1999 when she was 18 years old.
The Williams sisters’ idol is Gibson. As children, the Williams sisters sent letters to their role model, Gibson, who encouraged them.
Gibson was the first non-white player to win a major women’s tennis tournament, and 15 years later, in 1971, Australian aboriginal Yvonne Goulagong (72) reached the top at the French Open and Wimbledon. And 43 years after Gibson’s victory, a black major winner was born. Serena won the 1999 US Open. Venus won the 2000 and 2001 Wimbledon and the US Open twice in a row. Gibson’s 1957 and 1958 Wimbledon and two consecutive US Open victories were also reproduced in 43 years.
The ‘achievement’ of the Williams sisters is so outstanding that it is not easy to surpass them. However, there are descendants who dream of becoming ‘number one’, and Coco Goff (USA) is the most eye-catching among them. Goff was born in 2004 and reported his first win last year in Linz, Upper Austria in 2019. Goff was 15 years and 17 months old at the time, making her the youngest ever winner of a singles title on the Women’s Professional Tennis (WTA) Tour온라인바카라 since Nicole Vaidisova (Czech Republic) in 2004 in 15 years.
Gough’s idols are the Williams sisters. After watching Serena’s triumph at the 2009 Australian Open on TV, Goff set his aspirations to be a tennis player. Gough was ranked 686th at the end of 2018, but jumped to 68th in 2019, finished 2020 at 47th, 2021 at 19th, and last year at 4th. Current ranking is 6th. Only 10 of the world rankings from 1 to 49 are Gough. Gough has won three championships so far, including one this year. His career record was 132 wins and 67 losses. He hasn’t turned 20 yet, but his career winnings amount to $5.89 million (approximately 7.6 billion won).
Serena was 18 years old, and Venus was 20 years old when she held the major championship trophy. Gough made it to the French Open final last year at the age of 18, but swallowed regret. But he’s still young, so there are plenty of opportunities. And the Gough era seems imminent.