Student Article

Alice Marble was one of the biggest tennis stars of the 1930s. She played with power and courage, winning 18 Grand Slam titles and rarely losing a match. In 1939, she became the world’s number one player and swept Wimbledon by winning singles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles all in one year.

Early life and the start of her career

But Alice’s life was not just about tennis. She started out in California wanting to play baseball, but switched to tennis thanks to her brother’s advice. Her strong arm from baseball made her tennis serve powerful. She wore shorts on the court, which was unusual for women at the time, and she used a fast and aggressive style called "serve-and-volley."

Overcoming hardship

Life wasn’t always easy for Alice. She went through very hard times. At 15, she was attacked and hurt badly by a stranger, a secret she kept for years. Then, during a tennis match in Paris, she collapsed from an illness and was told she would never play again. But she didn’t give up. She left the hospital early and started winning again by 1936.

A multifaceted career

Alice became famous not just for tennis. She designed clothes, gave speeches, sang at fancy hotels, and even became a radio football reporter. She helped write stories for DC Comics and created a comic page called Wonder Women of History to tell stories of brave women like Florence Nightingale.

World War II and later life

During World War II, Alice joined a spy mission in Switzerland to find out if a rich man was hiding money for the Nazis. She was shot in the back by a double agent but survived.

Standing up for equal rights in tennis

After the war, she helped coach young tennis players like Billie Jean King. In 1950, she wrote an article asking for equal rights in tennis. She stood up for Althea Gibson, a young Black player, who was then allowed to play in a major tournament.

Alice Marble’s legacy

Alice Marble was a fighter, a leader, and a legend who reshaped sports, challenged racism, and risked her life for freedom. Her story lives on as a true example of courage in action.

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