To Tink Martina Navratilova is a fabulous role model and icon.

[Mygardenistoobig]

Just been watching her commenting on the tennis and I just admire her so much.

What a great sports woman.

She is my all time favourite tennis player. She played a far more interesting and versatile game than her regular opponent, Chris Evert but I always felt she was the underdog. The crowd always seemed to da our Chris and her boring baseline game.

I clearly remember the (male) umpire mispronouncing her name at Wimbledon and her having to correct him whilst the crowd tittered.

She had to leave her home and family to escape to the USA knowing that they would not be allowed to see her again. She played at Wimbledon whilst they were forced to watch her on the TV as they were forbidden from leaving the country.

Martina looked great tonight.

What a great example she is for both boys and girls.

[KatieScarlettreregged]

Agree 100%
I think she is fantastic.

[iisme]

Yeah, she's great.

[SaucyJack]

Were we supposed to be reading the title out in an Irish accent?


Yes, MN always seems like a jolly good egg.

[StupidBloodyKindle]

To be sure she is

[CrabbyTheCrabster]

I've read some pretty colourful stuff about how she conducts her relationships. Threw her last partner (they were unofficially married) out in a very brutal style, apparently.

Having said that, I've not got a lot of sympathy for people who go for alimony after a few years of marriage when there aren't children involved.

[tocmrpouce]

Her Desert Island Discs choices were great!

[CrystalHaze]

YANBU. She's awe-inspiring

[ShirleySmears]

Ah but we used to be able to pretend Chris Evert was British, when she was married to John LLoyd.

When Martina first appeared on the scene she was a first - a strong woman, using power in her game. My Dad was quite scandalised by how "unfeminine" she was [Hmm] Now she looks positively dainty.

I've always thought she's great. I want to know how she manages to play without her glasses driving her wild. Mine are always covered in smears and sliding down my nose.

[derxa]

Love her

[mrsmalcolmreynolds]

Totally agree, although I would also like to highlight Billie Jean King and Arthur Ashe as great tennis role models on and off the court - really good documentary the other day about AA, 40 years on from his Wimbledon win.

[BathtimeFunkster]

I love her.

I remember as a teenager that she was the best female player but all I heard about her was how unfeminine and ugly she supposedly was.

[bikeandrun]

Yeah there was a lot of negativity towards her, about her sexuality, appearance etc . Great to see her on the Wimbledon coverage with Lindsey davenport and Claire balding. Tennis is one the few sports where the women's game is given almost equal coverage to the men's. I think Martina and billy jean king before her have played a massive part in this.

[magimedi]

Martina =

I saw her last year in a chat with David Dimbleby as part of the Eastbourne tennis week & she was so natural & so lovely.

I also watched her practice on the Devonshire Park courts a few years ago - what a player!

[Mygardenistoobig]

Sorry for the typos!

Makes a change from being bombarded with all the glamorous, subservient females we are supposed to emulate.

I still think there is some negativity from the media towards women who push themselves and do and damn good job. Just look at the snide comments the Williams sisters still get about being masculine.

[specialsubject]

many of us have forgotten the horrors of the Iron Curtain and the appalling choices that it gave people. Martina had it REALLY tough.

she could also play tennis without endless silly squeaking noises!

although you have to be quite dumb to think you are supposed to emulate any celeb, let alone the ones whose value is purely decorative.

[CitronVert]

Love Martina. Didn't there used to be some great characters in women's tennis? They all seem a bit bland these days. I couldn't really name any apart from the Williams sisters and Sharapova. Maybe it's just me getting old.

[AndyWarholsOrange]

She's great. It makes me realise how much we've moved on in terms of equality for gay people- when she was playing, the majority of the population seemed to be quite openly homophobic. Loads of people at my school used to call her a 'filthy lesbian'. And her girlfriend was always described in hushed tones by commentators as her 'companion'. My nan wouldn't be budged from her belief that she was actually a man.
I know there's a way to go but, as a society, we've made a lot of progress.

[MrsItsNoworNotatAll]

She's fantastic.

[derxa]

Martina is a great sportswoman. I love her but who cares if she is gay or not. As far as sport is concerned, it's irrelevant and the same goes for Billie Jean. These people are sporting icons. To mention Clare Balding in the same breath as them is ridiculous. She is/was an amateur jockey who is a ubiquitous presence on the TV and she bores the fucking pants off me.
People are fed up with her presenting Wimbledon2Day and quite rightly so.

[bikeandrun]

I think Claire balding is an excellent sports presenter, always seems very well informed even if tennis isn't 'her' sport. I only mentioned her because it was so refreshing to see three intelligent women discussing sport without a bloke in sight. Nothing to do with sexuality, don't have clue about davenports sexuality!

[ShirleySmears]

People are fed up with the format of Wimbledon2Day, not with CB. She herself seems a bit embarrassed about what is being asked of her and I think she'd be happier with the old format. She is an excellent sports presenter though.

[jessym]

We were watching the highlights last night and DP, who is a huge sports fan, remarked that Martina is one of his heroes. As well as being one of the greatest sports women ever, she was decades ahead of her time by being 'out & proud' about her sexuality. She has done so much to change society's attitudes to Gay people, just by being herself.

She also looks better than ever in her mid 50s.

[CrystalHaze]

The days of Martina v Steffi were my absolute golden age of women's tennis. As someone said up-thread, so many current players seem bland in comparison: identikit tennis machines churned out by the big-name academies