Women of the Week: Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova

written by Emma Bartley

Friendships can come out of many different situations. Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert are a perfect example. For sixteen years, Martina and Chris rivaled against each other on the tennis court in eighty matches and 14 Grand Slam finals. Even though they fought on the court, they were best friends through it all.

In 1971, Chris Evert entered the tennis scene and automatically became America’s sweetheart. In contrast, Martina Navratilova was born in communist Czechoslovakia and left for the U.S. in 1975 in order to have more chances to play tennis.

The two women were complete opposites in the way they played; their matches were even called “fire and ice.” Chris was known for being stone-faced and not showing her emotions to her opponent, while Martina openly showed her emotions.

The press loved to run stories on their rivalry, but they were completely supportive of each other off the court. Martina said, “What’s weird about tennis is you’re both in the locker room before the match and after the match, and one is very happy and one is very sad. But we would put our arms around each other and say, ‘You know what, I was lucky,’ or, ‘Next time you’re going to get it, I’m sure,’ and, ‘Are you okay?’ And we would leave notes in each other’s racket bags for later.”

Chris and Martina recognized that there would be awkward moments. They knew that in their years of rivalry, there were going to be moments were there was more distance between them, but they would always come back to their old ways and still be close friends. Other tennis players would try to convince them that they must hate their rival, but they pushed through and their friendship was stronger than ever. Chris and Martina still hang out today!

Martina and Chris are an inspiration to us all. They show how important it is to support other women. Friendships can evolve out of any situation, even rivalries. We just need to put out a helping hand.

“The moment of victory is much too short to live for that and nothing else.” -Martina Navratilova

“If you can react the same way to winning and losing, that’s a big accomplishment.” -Chris Evert

“I am not looking for perfection. I look for the best in me.” -Martina Navratilova