Martina Navratilova, one of the finest players to pick up a racket, received a warm welcome in Prague. She went back to her hometown to receive the silver medal of the president of the Senate. Navratilova who won 59 major titles in total – 41 in doubles and 18 in singles, was not just honored for her tennis accolades but also for her personal positions such as being the recipient of the National Equality Award established by the Human Rights Campaign.

The 66-year-old legend came up with an emotional speech after receiving the medal. She always wanted to represent her country but the rigid laws in the 1970s forced her to go for defection. Navratilova gained back her Czech nationality in 2008 after defection in 1975.

Navratilova dives deep into the traumatic past

After receiving the medal, she spoke about the opportunities available to the current generation and compared them to how difficult it was back in the day when she was forced to change nationalities in order to compete. The former world number 1 expressed how happy she was at the current situation of tennis and sports in general.

Navratilova said via Radio Prague International,” I’m happy that both tennis and sport are more international. That people, especially children, have the opportunity to do sports, reach the top and win. But there’s still a way to go for those who don’t have that opportunity. There is always room for improvement, but things are way better than in my day and no children have to escape from Czechia at least.”

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It was an emotional evening for Navratilova. She was only 18 when she left for the United States thereby giving up on her Czech citizenship. Coming back to her home country to receive the medal brought a tear to her eye.

The recent success of Czech Republic in women’s tennis

Czech Republic has recently become a powerhouse in women’s tennis. The current WTA top 20 comprises four Czech players which is the most for any country. Karolina Pliskova, Barbora Krejcikova and Karolina Muchova, all have played at least one slam final in the last 24 months. On top of that, Krejcikova has also won multiple majors in the women’s doubles category with Katerina Siniakova.

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Petra Kvitova and Barbora Krejcikova also won the WTA 1000 events this year in Miami and Dubai respectively. Emerging youngsters such as Brenda Fruhvirtova, Linda Fruhvirtova and Linda Noskova ensure that Czech Republic has a bright future in women’s tennis.

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