Billie Jean King on track to become the first female athlete to receive the Congressional Gold Medal

Billie Jean King is on the verge of becoming the first female athlete ever to receive the Congressional Gold Medal.

The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest civilian award bestowed by the U.S. Congress. It recognizes individuals or groups who have made significant contributions to American history and culture. Only 11 male athletes, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic team, have received this award so far.

King would be the first individual female athlete to receive it, if the bipartisan legislation introduced in both chambers of Congress passes.

The legislation was introduced on Wednesday, September 20, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of King’s landmark victory over Bobby Riggs in the 'Battle of the Sexes' match.

The match, which drew more than 90 million viewers worldwide, was a pivotal moment in the women’s rights movement and the history of sports. King defeated Riggs, a former men’s champion who had boasted that he could beat any female player, in straight sets.

King’s achievements go beyond the tennis court. She is the founder of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), which gave women players more control over their careers and finances. She is also a co-founder of World Team Tennis (WTT), a co-ed professional league that promotes diversity and inclusion.

The 79-year-old is an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, having come out as gay in 1981. She is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, which she received from President Barack Obama in 2009.

The campaign to award Billie Jean King the Congressional Gold Medal is led by the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF), an organization that King founded in 1974 to advance the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity. The WSF is urging Americans to sign a national action alert on its website, asking their elected leaders to support the bill.

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Billie Jean King reflects on her historic ‘Battle of The Sexes’ triumph on its 50th anniversary

Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs at a press conference

The US Open recently celebrated 50 years of equal pay in tennis, honoring Billie Jean King, a pioneer in the fight for women's rights. In 1970, King and eight other female players formed their own tennis circuit to protest gender discrimination.

Three years later, King defeated Bobby Riggs in the iconic 'Battle of the Sexes' match, which helped to raise awareness of the issue and inspire women to fight for equal rights.

In an interview with People magazine, King said that her win over Riggs gave women the confidence to ask for what they wanted, such as raises at work.

"It gave women self-confidence to ask for what they want and need because we're taught not to," King said. "They ask for raises. I've had so many women tell me how it changed their lives or their grandmother's life or whoever; just the different generations it's covered."

When reflecting on the iconic match, King mentioned that there are days when the event seemed distant as if it happened a long time ago, and on other occasions, it felt as though it occurred just yesterday.

"Sometimes it feels so long ago, and other times it feels like today," King said. "It was really, really difficult to be heard. In 1973, Title IX had just been passed the year before where the educational amendment, we finally weren't going to have classroom quotas for women anymore."

Billie Jean King won 39 Grand Slam titles over the course of her career -- 12 singles titles, 16 women's doubles titles, and 11 mixed doubles titles.