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Jersey Proud: Althea Gibson honored at the U.S. Open

It was 75 years ago that Althea Gibson broke the color barrier in tennis during the U.S. Open.

News 12 Staff

Aug 27, 2025, 2:23 AM

Updated 2 hr ago

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The U.S. Open tennis tournament is going on in Queens. Throughout the tournament, they're honoring New Jersey's Althea Gibson.
It was 75 years ago that Gibson broke the color barrier in tennis during the U.S. Open. She went on to have a Hall of Fame career, winning five major titles.
Gibson then retired in East Orange.
There's a statue at the U.S. Open marking what happened back in 1950. There's also a statue of Gibson in Newark's Branch Brook Park for all the work she did with introducing kids to tennis in the 1970s.
Gibson died 33 years ago. Her career and legacy are forever Jersey Proud.