Page 1 / 2 - Home
But Navratilova admits that she was always mindful of potential consequences from living her life honestly, whether from lost endorsements or hostile fans.
“Everything that I've done, I've known what the consequences will be, but I'm willing to accept them,” she says. “If I didn't come out and pretended I was someone else, what are those consequences? I would not be who I am. Not being accepted by Madison Avenue because I was a lesbian — I could accept those consequences. My guidelines are totally philosophical and what's morally right to me. I was never guided by financial gain.”
Navratilova has been in a relationship for six years, but she doesn't discuss it publicly. She says, though, that she has “never been happier” and would marry her in a minute “if she'd have me.”
“I call it same-gender marriage because people immediately think of sex,” she says. “It's about love, it's about caring, understanding and respecting one another and being willing to die for one another. I'm obviously a strong advocate for same-gender marriage and will keep fighting for that.”
She is dismayed but undaunted by the lack of support from the White House on LGBT issues. “We can't be ignored anymore. In the current administration, I've never heard [President Bush] say the word lesbian, and he can't even say the word homosexual.”
Navratilova's outspokenness has always been a part of her nature. While it didn't endear her to the public or the press in the early days, it is now one of the reasons why she is so respected and beloved.
“I think they got to understand me for who I am and what I stand for,” she says. “They know that I speak my mind and they still respect me even if they don't agree. You can be politically opposed but you can still respect me. It took awhile for people to figure that out. Now I'm in the position to say whatever I want.”
In addition to continuing to be an activist for various causes, Navratilova plans to continue her promotion of the Rainbow Card, which raises money for the LGBT community. She will also increase her efforts to promote her book Shape Your Self, a guide to diet, exercise and other strategies for staying fit in middle age.
She would appear to be one of the world's top experts on the topic given her recent success, playing in her 40s against opponents who were up to three decades younger.
King, who won the 1979 Wimbledon doubles and 1980 U.S. Open doubles with Navratilova, calls the late-career achievements “awesome.”
“I think it's fabulous,” King says. “She is the best singles, doubles and mixed doubles player who ever lived. I'm just so happy for her.”
Navratilova, winner of 59 grand slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed, credits the final one to Bryan, who “really wanted to win this one for me.” But she also acknowledges that she was in terrific form.
“I was really hitting the ball well and started serving really well. I hadn't done in a few years,” she admits. “It really is amazing. At this age, I have no right to play tennis like I did.”
That final win also provided Navratilova with the gift of a perfect ending to her tennis career. When she was playing in her last Wimbledon this summer — mixed doubles and women's doubles quarterfinal matches on the same day — she knew Flushing Meadow was going to have to be the place to go for it.
“When I walked off [at Wimbledon], I thought, ‘This is not how it was supposed to end,'” she recalls. “It felt so wrong. If I had won at Wimbledon, I would have quit then. But I felt like I could play better and like I needed to win something.”
And the support from the crowds seemed to buoy her spirits along the way. “I did get tickled when I'd hear these people say how much I inspired them. They'd say, ‘You give us hope!' That's what kept me going.”
Page 1 / 2 - Home
