The Battle of the Sexes Was Not Thrown

          The Battle of the Sexes was a historic tennis match between a male tennis player and a woman. For the women's side, we have twenty-nine-year-old Billie Jean King, a true competitor, at this time she won 10 major single tennis championships. For the men's side, we have Bobby Riggs a fifty-five-year-old man who was once considered “the best tennis player in the world.” Before this match Bobby Riggs challenged Billie Jean King to a match and she declined. To be fair during the 1970s women were fighting for equal rights, so I can see why Billie Jean declined at first. She did not want to compete against a man who said things like “women belong in bedrooms and kitchens.” Bobby Riggs was not the only person who felt like this, he had many fans and supporters. So to be understanding of Billie Jean King I can see why she did not want to compete at first because this would give more men and people a reason to continuously say that “men are the superior sex”. After she finally agrees to compete after Bobby Riggs beats another female tennis player, Billie goes on to beat Bobby Riggs in this huge tennis match in the Houston Astrodome where over 30,000 people watched. Over 30,000 people watched a man lose to a woman. After winning this led people to believe that Bobby Riggs threw the match to pay his debt to the Mafia. I do not think this is true. After watching part of this match earlier this week in class, you can clearly see how much quicker Billie Jean King is compared to Bobby Riggs. Her ability to move laterally compared to his was a huge difference. You can also see Bobby Riggs trying very hard to hit the tennis ball as hard as he could because it was coming at a fast speed. Another reason I do not think the match was thrown is because Bobby Riggs has a huge ego. Having a huge ego he went in to prove a point and he wanted to prove that women cannot compete with men, he is known to say very misogynistic things about women, so why would he throw the match when he knew if he lost his point would no longer be valid because Billie Jean King proved him wrong.  After the match, he had to swallow all his pride and he said “got to hand it to her; she played a great match." And as an athlete, whether you like or dislike someone, game recognizes game and I feel Bobby Riggs realized that Billie Jean King was a great tennis player and he finally gave her the respect she deserved. After a misogynistic man like Bobby Riggs realized that women could compete too, this started to shift more people's perspectives on women’s rights and equality.