Althea Gibson's monumental granite sculpture watches over the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as the U.S. Open commemorates 75 years since she broke the color barrier in American tennis. The historic milestone has become a centerpiece of this year's tournament, highlighting Gibson's profound impact on the sport and those who followed in her footsteps.
Frances Tiafoe, a semifinalist in 2022 and 2024, emphasized Gibson's importance during a press conference. "What a legend," Tiafoe said. "You always got to pay that forward. You always got to be educated on that understand that without X, Y, and Z, there is no Hailey Baptiste, there's no Sloane Stephens, the Williamses, and all these other things. And they opened that for us."
In 1950, three years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier, Gibson became the first Black player to compete at the U.S. National Championships (now the U.S. Open) at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills. Her journey to that moment required overcoming institutional barriers designed to exclude Black players from the sport's highest levels.
Venus Williams, speaking ahead of the tournament, stressed the importance of properly recognizing Gibson's achievements. "I think the most important part is that we are celebrating it and recognizing it, because Althea accomplished so much, and a lot of it has not been given the credit it deserves and the attention and the praise," Williams said. At this year's tournament, Williams wore an outfit inspired by Gibson for her opening match.
Gibson's path to the U.S. National Championships wasn't straightforward. Despite being a three-time national champion of the American Tennis Association, she faced a systematic barrier: the qualifying tournaments were held at private clubs that excluded Black players. The breakthrough came partly through advocacy from Alice Marble, a top White American player who wrote a powerful piece in American Lawn Tennis Magazine challenging the tennis establishment.
When Gibson finally received her invitation, the USLTA president Lawrence A. Baker stated simply: "Miss Gibson has been accepted on her ability." As Gibson wrote in her autobiography: "That was all I had ever asked."
The significance of Gibson's legacy remains evident today, particularly as incidents of racism still occur in the sport. During this year's U.S. Open, Taylor Townsend faced comments from Jelena Ostapenko who told her she had "no education" during their match.
Townsend later reflected on the importance of representation: "I felt very honored to be able to carry and hold that flag and that torch, and to be able to continue to move it forward. You know, I feel like representation is very important, and you only need one."
Even off the court, Gibson's impact continues through initiatives like Ayan's Aces, founded by Ayan Broomfield to increase Black attendance at tennis events. Broomfield, who is Frances Tiafoe's partner, has secured hundreds of tickets at tournaments in Miami, Washington, D.C., Toronto, and New York to bring people who wouldn't otherwise attend.
"We felt like we could have the biggest impact by allowing them to show their followings that they were here," Broomfield explained. "That way people can begin to see themselves here hopefully."
As the U.S. Open continues to honor Gibson with videos celebrating her achievements playing on stadium courts and her image decorating the annual tournament poster, her presence remains a powerful reminder of how far tennis has come—and how far it still needs to go.
