By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Thursday, May 9, 2024
Time to celebrate, tennis fans: You can now have breakfast with the King.
Outside-the-box thinker Billie Jean King stars on the iconic orange box.
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Wheaties is celebrating Billie Jean King’s legacy as a trailblazing champion with a limited-edition box featuring the iconic social rights activist and tennis Hall of Famer.
The owner of a combined 39 Grand Slam titles, including a record 20 Wimbledon championships, King has made history on and off court. She was the first woman athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was a key member of the Original 9 that launched women’s professional tennis.
King was also the first woman to have a sports venue named in her honor, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, which is both home to the US Open and a popular public court center for players of all ages and skill levels. King is the first woman to earn over $100,000 in prize money in a single tennis season.
“Billie Jean King has been defining what it means to be a Wheaties Champion for decades, as a true advocate for equality between men and women from the tennis court to the board room and beyond,” said Mindy Murray, Brand Experience Director, Morning Foods. “We’re thrilled to recognize her on our newest Wheaties box cover and celebrate the strides she’s made for athletes everywhere.”
Opponents and fans know King owned one of the best backhand volleys the sport has seen. The limited-edition Wheaties box shows serve-and-volleyer King on the attack with a low forehand.
Former U.S. Olympic team captain King joins a cast of some of the most accomplished American champions in history, including Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, Walter Payton, Wayne Gretzky, to name a few, who have graced the iconic orange Wheaties box. The 2007 United States Davis Cup champion squad of Andy Roddick, James Blake, Mike Bryan, Bob Bryan and captain Patrick McEnroe were also honored with a Wheaties box tribute.
For more than 100 years, Wheaties has honored athletes who are champions in their sport and in the community, and King joins hundreds of prestigious athletes and fellow Olympians who have been celebrated with their own orange box.
“I am honored to be on the next Wheaties box to join the legacy of incredible athletes and the work we put in for our sport and our communities,” said King. “I’ve dedicated my life to equality for all, uplifting those around me and inspiring girls and women, in particular, to dream big. This box feels like a full circle moment as we celebrate the next generation of champions.”
