"Where do you put limits? They were saying I have an advantage because I’m gay"- When Martina Navratilova commented on gender-based division in sports

Martina Navratilova once discussed perceptions around her success in tennis. She shared that some people believed she had an advantage over other female players simply because she was gay.

Navratilova won 18 Grand Slam singles titles and an impressive 41 Major titles in doubles and mixed doubles. Her path to stardom, however, was not without challenges. In 1981, she faced a significant personal hurdle when the New York Daily News publicly revealed her bisexuality (she later identified as gay) after an interview.

Since then, the Czech-born American has embraced her identity and used her platform to advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights. In a 2018 appearance on Conversations with Tyler, Martina Navratilova discussed gender-based segregation in sports, saying:

"You just try to take it case by case and make it as fair as possible for everybody involved. I’m not a doctor, so it’s hard to pin that one. You just try to make it fair. There is not any particular rule. If you go by that, then some guy may have a lot more testosterone than another guy. Is he banned because he has too much?"

"Where do you put the limits? Who decides where the limits are? You just take it case by case and try to make it a level playing field. With me, they were saying I have an advantage because I’m gay. [laughs] Somehow, a gay player hits the ball better than a straight player. I don’t know," she added.