Fifty years ago, Martina Navratilova, then an 18-year-old, bravely defected from communist Czechoslovakia, seeking a new life in the United States. This high-profile Cold War defection paved the way for her to become a tennis icon.
However, in a recent interview with the BBC’s Amol Rajan, she expressed apprehension, stating she believes the US would now deny her entry.
Navratilova cited her lack of allegiance to President Trump and voiced concerns about the US becoming a totalitarian state. She points to the Trump administration’s intensified immigration raids, travel bans affecting citizens from twelve countries, and reports of tourist detentions at the border as evidence.
She declared that if she were in her 1975 position today, she would not choose America as her new home, citing its current state as undemocratic. Navratilova emphasized her frustration with what she sees as a worsening situation, particularly the nation’s increasingly hostile stance toward migrants.
Navratilova described the emotional difficulty of her 1975 defection, leaving behind her loving family in Revnice. The uncertainty of seeing her parents again weighed heavily on her. Her stated reason for leaving was to pursue her dream of becoming world number one, a goal she felt unattainable in her homeland.
Indeed, she achieved that ambition, holding the number one ranking in both women’s singles and doubles for record-breaking periods. Now a dual US and Czech citizen, she resides in the US with her wife, Julia Lemigova, but worries about the potential loss of her citizenship given the current political climate.
Despite her political differences with the current administration, Navratilova publicly agrees with President Trump on one highly contentious issue: the participation of transgender women in sports. She maintains her firm belief that trans women’s inclusion in women’s tennis is unfair due to inherent biological advantages, a view currently subject to much debate.
She advocates for separate sports categories based on biological sex, emphasizing that this is not about exclusion but fairness, and that allowing trans women to compete in women’s sports displaces female athletes. She supports the UK’s recent legal rulings on the matter.
Navratilova openly discussed her personal battles with cancer, including a breast cancer diagnosis in 2010 and a recurrence thirteen years later, coupled with a throat cancer diagnosis. While describing treatment as arduous, she is currently cancer-free and grateful for her health. She reflects that the experience has deepened her appreciation for life and her ability to prioritize.
Amol Rajan Interviews: Martina Navratilova is on BBC 2 at 19:00 on 18 June, and on BBC iPlayer.
Jakub Mensik receives a warning after throwing his racket at the ground and seeing it bounce into the stands during his defeat by Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut at Queen’s.
US strikes could involve using superior weaponry to hit an underground nuclear site, sources say.
BBC Sport’s Ask Me Anything team looks at how wildcard entries are decided at Wimbledon.
Former British number one Dan Evans and two-time champion Petra Kvitova are given wildcards into the Wimbledon singles draws later this month.
India’s statement followed a phone call between Modi and Trump after the US president left the G7 summit.