12 Iconic Photos of Althea Gibson, the First Black Player on the U.S. Tennis Tour

Althea Gibson broke the color barrier in tennis and went on to have an impressive golf career, too

Before the Williams sisters, Chanda Rubin, Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff began collecting major tennis titles, Althea Gibson broke the color barrier.

At the age of 23, Gibson made her debut at the US Nationals (which later became the US Open), becoming the first African American to compete in the tournament. In 1957, she captured the French Open singles title (then known as the French Championships), becoming the first Black person to win.

By the end of the decade, she had collected 11 Grand Slam titles, including multiple championships at Wimbledon and the US Open. She was named AP Female Athlete of the Year in both 1957 and 1958.

After retiring from tennis, Gibson pivoted to golf and became the first Black woman to join the Ladies Professional Golf Association in 1964.

Although Gibson essentially integrated American tennis in 1950 and later golf, her prolific career and accolades are often overlooked in the mainstream tennis world. In spite of this, her impact inspired future generations of Black tennis players and golfers to dominate these sports and served as a model for many Black athletes, especially the Williams sisters, who frequently invoke Gibson as a catalyst for their legendary careers.

Here are the best photos of the life and legacy of Althea Gibson.

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Trailblazer in the Making

Gibson competed at the historic Kent Championships as a key grass-court warm-up for Wimbledon in June 1951.

There, she made history as the first Black player to break the color barrier.

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Early Success

In 1958, Althea Gibson received the Venus Rosewater Dish from Queen Elizabeth II after winning the women’s singles final at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London.

She defeated Angela Mortimer of Great Britain.

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Powerful Player

When asked about her tennis style, Gibson described her game as “aggressive, dynamic, and mean,” per The New York Times.

Gibson’s swing was often defined by powerful strokes, a forceful serve and fearless net-charging.

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Family Portrait

Born in 1927 in Silver, S.C., Gibson and her family moved to Harlem as part of the Great Migration in 1930.

Gibson is pictured here with her parents, Anna and Daniel Gibson, as she receives N.Y.C.’s highest civilian award, the Bronze Medallion, from Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr.

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New York Icon

Gibson instantly became a symbol for racial progress during the civil rights era.

Here, she was celebrated in N.Y.C. with a parade honoring her Wimbledon win and her breaking of the color line.

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A Tennis Teacher

Gibson mentioned in her autobiography that she was not particularly fond of school, but loved sports and experimented with basketball and ping-pong before turning to tennis.

Here she is teaching tennis pointers to students at a high school in Brooklyn, N.Y.

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Gibson, The Golfer

After retiring from tennis, Gibson played golf professionally for 14 years, appearing in a total of 171 golfing events, per the LPGA.

She also toured with the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, playing exhibition tennis matches before their games.

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A Patron of the Arts

Gibson was also a one-time actress and more frequent singer.

Here she is in her one movie role, The Horse Soldiers, which was a Civil War Western film.

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Famous Friends

Frequently nicknamed the “female Jackie Robinson,” Gibson used her athletic talents to confront racial barriers in both tennis and golf.

Here she is in 1951 with baseball legend Jackie Robinson talking about her backhand grip at the ANTA Theater Tennis Tournament in Manhattan.

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Final Match

Gibson beat Darlene Hard at Forest Hills in 1958 to take home the championship. She won the match, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

However, it would be her last tournament win before leaving the sport behind for other endeavors.

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Glamor Girl

Here Gibson was serving sporty-chic in a portrait circa 1970 in New York.

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Standing Ovation

Gibson died on Sept. 28, 2003, at the age of 76, after briefly serving as New Jersey’s commissioner of athletics.

This rare photograph of Gibson in the later years of her life shows her in her New Jersey home with some of the awards she amassed throughout her prolific career.

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