Women's Sports Foundation
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| Founded | 1974 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Billie Jean King |
| Type | 501(c)3 charitable educational foundation |
| Focus | to advance the lives of girls and women through sport and physical activity |
| Location |
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| Method | Sports advocacy, girls' and women's health, educational projects, grant making, research |
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Key people
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Chief Executive Officer Grete Eliassen, Skiing |
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Employees
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15 |
| Website | www.womenssportsfoundation.org |
Chief Executive Officer
Deborah Antoine
Co-chairs of the Board
Sandra Vivas and Madeline Weinstein
The Women's Sports Foundation (WSF) is a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit charity focused on female involvement in sports. Founded in 1974 by tennis player Billie Jean King and initially supported by Olympic athletes Donna de Varona and Suzy Chaffee, its stated mission statement is "To advance the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity."
The Women's Sports Foundation was legally set up in 1974 by Billie Jean King, her business manager Jim Jorgensen, and her then-husband Larry King. The Foundation was originally supported by Olympic medalist Donna de Varona and Olympic skier Suzy Chaffee.
In 1972 and in 1973 Billie Jean was awarded the Bob Hope Calvalcade of Sports for the "Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year". In 1974, she donated her winnings of $5,000 to incorporate the Women's Sports Foundation. Simultaneously, she started a new magazine titled Women's Sports.
The WSF began its multi-sport emphasis at the 1975 ABC TV show Women’s Superstars which was held at the Houston Astrodome. It was there that Donna de Varona working as an ABC Billie Jean King invited the women athlete contestants to join in on the effort.
For ten years, from 1976 to 1986, under the direction of Executive Director, Eva Auchincloss and Associate Director Holly Turner and the Chairwoman Billie Jean King, the Board of Trustees was expanded to include Olympian Peggy Fleming, Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz, and Vice-President of Bristol-Myers Marvin Koslow, David Foster, CEO of Colgate Palmolive. In 1979, Donna de Varona was appointed the first president of the Foundation. Under the leadership of Executive Director Eva Auchincloss and her team, the foundation grew from an organization with $500 in the bank to one with a $1M endowment and an operating budget of $1M.
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