Billie Jean King is considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time. Now 76, she's equally well-known for her work as an activist for gender equality and LGBTQ+ rights, which harks back to 1981, when she was publicly outed as a lesbian.
The experience was "horrible," King told NBC News in 2017, adding that her team urged her to deny her sexuality. King refused, saying "I'm going to do it. I don't care. This is important to me to tell the truth." She said she didn't fully feel comfortable about being gay until she was 51, but added that if she could change anything about her experiences, "I'd come out earlier."