Althea Gibson
First Black tennis player to win a Grand Slam and Wimbledon.
Althea Neale Gibson was born on August 25, 1927, in Silver, South Carolina, and died on September 28, 2003. She became a groundbreaking American tennis player and professional golfer, among the first Black athletes to break the color barrier in international tennis. In 1956, she made history as the first Black player to claim a Grand Slam title at the French Open. The next year, she captured both Wimbledon and the U.S. Nationals (which later became the U.S. Open), and repeated that double victory in 1958. The Associated Press named her Female Athlete of the Year both years. Over her career, she amassed 11 Grand Slam titles: five in singles, five in doubles, and one in mixed doubles.
Gibson’s early life was marked by hardship. She was born to Daniel and Annie Bell Gibson, sharecroppers on a cotton farm in rural South Carolina. The Great Depression hit southern farmers early, so in 1930 the family moved to Harlem as part of the Great Migration, where her three sisters and brother were born. Their apartment sat on a stretch of 143rd Street that the Police Athletic League had turned into a play area, barricaded during daylight for organized sports. Gibson quickly took to paddle tennis, and by age 12, in 1939, she became the New York City women’s paddle tennis champion.
She dropped out of school at 13 and, using boxing skills taught by her father, turned to street fighting, girls’ basketball, and movies. Fearing her father’s violent temper, she briefly lived in a Catholic shelter for abused children. In 1940, neighbors pooled money to get her a junior membership and lessons at the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club in Harlem’s Sugar Hill section. At first, Gibson disliked tennis, thinking it was for weak people. “I kept wanting to fight the other player every time I started to lose a match,” she said. In 1941, she entered and won her first tournament, the American Tennis Association (ATA) New York State Championship. She won the ATA national girls’ title in 1944 and 1945, lost the women’s final in 1946 to Roumania Peters, then began a streak of ten straight ATA women’s championships in 1947. “I knew that I was an unusual, talented girl, through the grace of God,” she wrote. “I didn’t need to prove that to myself. I only wanted to prove it to my opponents.”
Her playing style was aggressive, even by today’s standards. She had a powerful, versatile serve that let her contr
- born
- August 25, 1927, Silver, Clarendon County, South Carolina
- died
- September 28, 2003
- field
- Tennis and professional golf
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- First Black player to win a Grand Slam event (French Open, 1956); first Black champion at Wimbledon (1957); first Black player in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (early 1960s)
Lore & Background
Gibson was born on August 25, 1927, in Silver, South Carolina, to sharecroppers Daniel and Annie Bell Gibson. The family moved to Harlem in 1930 as part of the Great Migration. By age 12, she was the New York City women's paddle tennis champion. She quit school at 13 and engaged in street fighting and girls basketball. In 1940, neighbors financed a junior membership at the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club in Harlem. She initially disliked tennis but won her first tournament in 1941, the American Tennis Association (ATA) New York State Championship. She won the ATA national girls' division in 1944 and 1945, and from 1947 began a streak of ten straight national ATA women's titles.
In 1946, she moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, under the sponsorship of physician Hubert A. Eaton and attended a segregated high school. In 1949, she became the first Black woman to play in the USTA's National Indoor Championships, reaching the quarter-finals. She entered Florida A&M University on a full athletic scholarship. In 1950, after lobbying by ATA officials and retired champion Alice Marble, Gibson became the first Black player invited to the US Nationals at Forest Hills. She lost in the second round to Louise Brough. In 1951, she won the Caribbean Championships and became one of the first Black competitors at Wimbledon. In 1955, the State Department sent her on a goodwill tour of Asia, where she strengthened her confidence. On May 27, 1956, she won the French Championships singles, becoming the first African-American to win a Grand Slam tournament. In 1957, she was seeded first at Wimbledon, defeated Darlene Hard in the finals, and received the trophy from Queen Elizabeth II.
Reader's Guide
Gibson's significance lies in her role as a pioneer who broke racial barriers in international tennis and later in professional golf. At a time when racism and prejudice were widespread, she was often compared to Jackie Robinson. Her participation in the 1950 US Nationals received extensive national and international coverage, with journalist Lester Rodney noting that no Negro player had ever set foot on those courts. Billie Jean King said, 'Her road to success was a challenging one, but I never saw her back down.' Former New York City Mayor David Dinkins called her an inspiration because of what she was able to do when it was enormously difficult to play tennis if you were Black. Venus Williams wrote, 'Her accomplishments set the stage for my success.' Gibson was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971 and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame in 1980. Her legacy is carried forward by players like Venus and Serena Williams.
Did You Know?
- Gibson was the first Black player to win a Grand Slam event, the French Open in 1956.
- She was the first Black champion at Wimbledon, receiving the trophy from Queen Elizabeth II in 1957.
- In the early 1960s, she became the first Black player to compete in the Ladies Professional Golf Association.
- She won 11 Grand Slam titles: five singles, five doubles, and one mixed doubles.
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