1957 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
Althea Neale Gibson was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first African American to win a Grand Slam event. The following year she won both Wimbledon and the US Nationals, then won both again in 1958 and was voted Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press in both years. In all, she won 11 Grand Slam titles: five singles titles, five doubles titles, and one mixed doubles title. "She is one of the greatest players who ever lived," said Bob Ryland, a tennis contemporary and former coach of Venus and Serena Williams."Martina [Navratilova] couldn't touch her. I think she'd beat the Williams sisters." Gibson was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971 and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame in 1980. In the early 1960s, she also became the first Black player to compete on the Women's Professional Golf Tour.
Althea Louise Brough Clapp was an American tennis player. In her career between 1939 and 1959, she won six Grand Slam titles in singles as well as numerous doubles and mixed-doubles titles. At the end of the 1955 tennis season, Lance Tingay of the London Daily Telegraph ranked her world No. 1 for the year.
Darlene Ruth Hard was an American professional tennis player, known for her aggressive volleying ability and strong serves. She captured singles titles at the French Championships in 1960 and the U.S. Championships in 1960 and 1961. With eight different partners, she won a total of 13 women's doubles titles in Grand Slam tournaments, and was the finest doubles player of her generation. Her last doubles title, at the age of 33 at the 1969 US Open, came six years after she had retired from serious competition to become a tennis instructor. She also played the US Open singles tournament in 1969, losing in the second round to Françoise Dürr.
Beverly Joyce Fleitz was an American tennis player from the United States who was active in the late 1940s and during the 1950s. According to John Olliff and Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, Fleitz was ranked in the world top 10 in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1958, and 1959, reaching a career high of World No. 3 in those rankings in 1954, 1955, and 1958. Fleitz was included in the year-end top 10 rankings issued by the United States Lawn Tennis Association from 1948 through 1951 and in 1954, 1955, 1958, and 1959. She was the top-ranked U.S. player in 1959. She was ambidextrous and played with two forehands.
Shirley Brasher is a former tennis player from England who won three Grand Slam titles during her career and who was the top-ranked singles player in her country in 1957.
The 1957 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 24 June until Saturday 6 July 1957. It was the 71st staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1957. Lew Hoad and Althea Gibson won the singles titles.
Althea Gibson defeated Angela Mortimer in the final, 6–0, 12–10 to win the women's singles tennis title at the 1956 French Championships. It was her first Grand Slam tournament title, and Gibson became the first African American to win a Grand Slam tournament.
The 1956 French Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor clay courts at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France. The tournament ran from 15 May until 26 May. It was the 60th staging of the French Championships, and the second Grand Slam tennis event of 1956. Lew Hoad and Althea Gibson won the singles titles.
The 1947 U.S. National Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills in New York City, United States. The tournament ran from September 6 until September 14. It was the 67th staging of the U.S. National Championships, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of the year.
The 1955 U.S. National Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills in New York City, United States. The tournament ran from 2 September until 11 September. It was the 75th staging of the U.S. National Championships, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of the year.
The 1956 U.S. National Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills in New York City, United States. The tournament ran from 31 August until 9 September. It was the 76th staging of the U.S. National Championships, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of the year.
The 1958 U.S. National Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills in New York City, United States. The tournament ran from 29 August until 7 September. It was the 78th staging of the U.S. National Championships, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of the year.
The 1959 U.S. National Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on outdoor grass courts at two locations in the United States. The men's and women's singles as well as the mixed doubles were played from September 4 through September 13 at the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills in New York City, while the men's and women's doubles were held at the Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts from August 16 though August 23, 1959. It was the 79th staging of the U.S. National Championships, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of the year. Neale Fraser and Maria Bueno won the singles titles.
Jacqueline Anne Shilcock was a British tennis player who was active in the 1950s.
Two-time defending champion Maureen Connolly defeated Doris Hart in the final, 6–2, 6–4 to win the women's singles tennis title at the 1953 U.S. National Championships. With the win, she became the first woman in history to complete the Grand Slam. Connolly won the tournament without losing a set.
First-seeded Shirley Fry defeated Althea Gibson 6–3, 6–4 in the final to win the women's singles tennis title at the 1956 U.S. National Championships.
Althea Gibson defeated Louise Brough in the final, 6–3, 6–2 to win the women's singles tennis title at the 1957 U.S. National Championships. Gibson won the tournament without losing a set.
Defending champion Althea Gibson defeated Darlene Hard in the final, 3–6, 6–1, 6–2 to win the women's singles tennis title at the 1958 U.S. National Championships.
The 1957 Pacific Southwest Championships was a combined men's and women's amateur tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at the Los Angeles Tennis Club in Los Angeles, California in the United States. It was the 31st edition of the tournament and took place from September 13 through September 22, 1957. Vic Seixas and Althea Gibson won the singles titles.
Malcolm Anderson [1] 
Althea Gibson 
Kurt Nielsen