As Women’s History Month closes, we take a closer look at Althea Gibson, the Black American two-sport athlete whose legacy is still being celebrated even 20 years after her death.It may be 50 years ...

1. Althea Gibson’s first sport was ping-pong. Born on August 25, 1927, in South Carolina to parents who worked as sharecroppers, Gibson was 3 when her family migrated to Harlem in New York City.

Before Althea Gibson could play -- much less win ... Gibson has turned into a recluse in her well-kept garden apartment in East Orange, N.J., according to Time last September.

Althea Gibson’s advice to Serena and Venus Williams Fortunately, times have changed. When Serena Williams retired in 2022, for example, she did so having won nearly $100 million in prize money ...

Gibson was the first black tennis player to win a grand slam, which she accomplished in 1956 at the French Open. Just a year later, she won the U.S. Open, taking home the trophy in both 1957 and 1958.

But when the match resumed the next day, Gibson, 23, was visibly unnerved by the hordes of photographers, and Brough beat her in just 11 minutes.. Nonetheless, Gibson had broken the color barrier ...

As Women’s History Month closes, we celebrate Althea Gibson, the Black American two-sport athlete whose legacy is still felt 20 years after her death.

Althea Gibson broke barriers By Larry Schwartz ... Later, Gibson turned into a recluse in her well-kept garden apartment in East Orange, N.J., according to Time in September 1997.