Althea Gibson :: Biography Biographies

Althea Gibson As we look at our past, we are better able to see the positive advances that we have made. One of the greatest obsticles that we have overcome is the barrier of race. Over the last several decades African Americans have had a huge impact on many areas of society such as politics, educatoin and most definately athletics. On August 27, 1927, Althea Gibson was born. She did not enter the world to a life of glamor. From the beginning, her life was a tough one. Her family resided in Harlem during the 1930’s and 40;s. Times were very difficult for the young girl. Her family was on welfare and she, herself was a client of the society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Because of home life traumas, Althea frequently skipped school. The times that she did go, she struggled though the day. While she was growing up, she also ran away from home numerous times. As any young child would do, Althea searched for an outlet from the everyday hardships of school and home life. This is where she discovered tennis. It all began at local recreation programs where she took up table tennis, or ping pong. Althea had talent right from the beginning. She realized that she, a girl who’s life had been nothing but rough roads and abrupt turns, could be good at something. As she continued to gain interest as well as perfect her table tennis skills, Althea began to compete, and win several local tournaments. Because of these victories,Althea began to get noticed. One man, a musician by the name of Buddy Walker, saw Althea play one day and had a revolation. He figured that if Althea was so good at table tennis, then she would excel in regular tennis as well. At the time, no one realized just how beneficial this idea would be for the young Harlem girl, Althea Gibson. Through donations raised to pay for her membership and lessons, Althea became a member of an African American club called the Harlem Cosmopolitian Tennis Club. It was here that she aquired the skills needed to compete in tennis matches at a higher, more competative level. At the time that Althea was emerging as a recognized tennis player, African American’s opportunities were somewhat limitied. One organization called the American Tennis Association provided tounament opportunities for African American tennis players. In 1942, Althea Gibson had her first landmark Althea Gibson :: Biography Biographies Althea Gibson As we look at our past, we are better able to see the positive advances that we have made. One of the greatest obsticles that we have overcome is the barrier of race. Over the last several decades African Americans have had a huge impact on many areas of society such as politics, educatoin and most definately athletics. On August 27, 1927, Althea Gibson was born. She did not enter the world to a life of glamor. From the beginning, her life was a tough one. Her family resided in Harlem during the 1930’s and 40;s. Times were very difficult for the young girl. Her family was on welfare and she, herself was a client of the society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Because of home life traumas, Althea frequently skipped school. The times that she did go, she struggled though the day. While she was growing up, she also ran away from home numerous times. As any young child would do, Althea searched for an outlet from the everyday hardships of school and home life. This is where she discovered tennis. It all began at local recreation programs where she took up table tennis, or ping pong. Althea had talent right from the beginning. She realized that she, a girl who’s life had been nothing but rough roads and abrupt turns, could be good at something. As she continued to gain interest as well as perfect her table tennis skills, Althea began to compete, and win several local tournaments. Because of these victories,Althea began to get noticed. One man, a musician by the name of Buddy Walker, saw Althea play one day and had a revolation. He figured that if Althea was so good at table tennis, then she would excel in regular tennis as well. At the time, no one realized just how beneficial this idea would be for the young Harlem girl, Althea Gibson. Through donations raised to pay for her membership and lessons, Althea became a member of an African American club called the Harlem Cosmopolitian Tennis Club. It was here that she aquired the skills needed to compete in tennis matches at a higher, more competative level. At the time that Althea was emerging as a recognized tennis player, African American’s opportunities were somewhat limitied. One organization called the American Tennis Association provided tounament opportunities for African American tennis players. In 1942, Althea Gibson had her first landmark