‘Raised to Get Married’ – 59YO Tennis Legend Gigi Fernandez Beams With Pride as She Sheds Light on How She Transformed Regressive Attitudes

Achievements don’t only mean your trophies and titles, but also the legacy you’ve created. In a candid statement, Puerto Rican tennis legend Gigi Fernandez shared what makes her proud. 59-year-old Fernandez holds many records to her name. She has won the Major doubles title 17 times throughout her career. But when she was asked which of these achievements are worth taking pride in, Gigi had a different answer ready. 

She represented the USA when she won both her Olympic medals. However, Fernandez is a Puerto Rican. Fernandez played for a total of 14 successful and rewarding years in the circuit before she retired. 

Gigi Fernandez and her most prized achievement 

Gigi Fernandez, even after becoming a successful player, never forgot her roots. Fernandez takes immense pride in who she is and where she comes from. So when she was asked about any particular achievement that makes her proud, the answer was quite obvious. 

Gigi addressed the fact that she gave a chance to girls back in her country. She set an example and inspired many to follow through. Fernandez said: “I gave girls in Puerto Rico the opportunity to understand that it was OK for them to be professional athletes.” She soon explains why she said this. According to her: “Because when I was growing up, girls were not professionals. They were raised to get married and have kids.” 

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Fernandez also pointed out another woman player. She talked about Monica Puig and how her win at the Olympics makes her proud. She said: “Look at Monica Puig, who won the Olympic gold medal in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. So, yeah, I’m proud of that.” And this goes with a very deep back story.

Gigi’s theory about Hall of Famers

Fernandez goes on to acknowledge that her legacy makes her quite proud. “I’m most proud of the legacy I left in Puerto Rico.” She dove a little deeper and stated that: “We come from a very small island, 100 miles by 35 in the middle of the Caribbean.”

She then goes on to explain how there aren’t one but two Hall of Famers from Puerto Rico, unlike China, that has a population of over 1 billion folks but just one Hall of Famer. In her words: “There’s two tennis Hall of Famers that are Puerto Rican — Charlie Pasarell is the other one. So when you look at China with their billion people, and they have one — Li Na. There are a lot of tennis nations with only one person in the Hall of Fame, and Puerto Rico has two.”

It is quite heartwarming to see legends like Gigi Fernandez put so much effort into making tennis better. The fact that she cares more about the legacy she is leaving behind says a lot about her. She is definitely the kind of role model people would happily follow.

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