When LIFE Magazine caught up with Althea Gibson in 1956 in France, the tennis star—who was born Aug. 25, 1927—was already famous, but she was still proving herself to the world.
“For Althea Gibson the road to Wimbledon, where she appears this week as a top-seeded player, began 22 years ago on a street in Harlem,” LIFE reported. “There with a wooden paddle she learned a slam-bang version of tennis—Harlem children still play it—and developed her hard, unladylike strokes.”
WANT MORE FROM ESSENCE? Subscribe to our daily newsletter for the latest in hair, beauty, style and celebrity news
As one of the most interesting and accomplished figures in the history of tennis, by 1950 she had gotten enough attention within the sport that the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association allowed her to be the first African-America in its national championship, the tournament that was the precursor to today’s U.S. Open. And yet she kept her own success in perspective: “I’m elated and I’m not,” she told LIFE after winning the French championship. “If I’d lost I’d feel the same.”
This article originally appeared on TIME.com. To read more, visit their website.