Martina Navratilova marries partner in New York
Tennis champion and gay rights advocate weds Julia Lemigova
“I’m 58 years old, and I got married for the first time. It’s about time, right?”
— Martina Navratilova, nine-time Wimbledon tennis champion and LGBT icon, speaking with the BBC after her wedding to partner Julia Lemigova at the Peninsula hotel in New York City. Navratilova came out as bisexual over three decades ago, but it was this year, in front of a live and televised audience at the US Open, that she proposed to her partner of six years. Lemigova told the BBC that she was “overwhelmed and completely surprised, but I would not expect anything less from Martina.”
Navratilova, a vocal supporter of gay rights, also used her wedding day to reiterate how few openly gay athletes there are. “I’m surprised more players haven’t come out. Particularly no male players. They’re so far in the closet, I don’t even know who they are.”
Watch Navratilova propose to Lemigova below:
Image Credit: Marianne Bevis / Flickr
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