Gibson Made Her Hits Count; Win Big: The champion paved the way for black American tennis players.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)

Byline: MICHAEL MINK

A fire burned deep in Althea Gibson.

"I always wanted to be somebody. . . . It's why I took to tennis right away and kept working at it," said Gibson, who died Sunday at age 76. "I've worshipped (legendary boxer and friend) Sugar Ray Robinson. It wasn't just because he was a wonderful fellow, and good to me when there was no special reason for him to be; it was because he was somebody, and I was determined that I was going to be somebody, too."

Raised in wretched poverty in New York City's Harlem, Gibson broke the color barrier in the all-white, upscale, country-club world of the United States Lawn Tennis Association.

In 1950, she became the first black American to play in the U.S. Open, which was held at Forest Hills, N.Y. The next year, she accomplished the same at Wimbledon in England.

U.S. Open, Wimbledon Winner

When she won the U.S. Open and Wimbledon in 1957, she became the first black person to capture each title. Gibson repeated the sweep the next year and finished with 11 Grand Slam titles. She was inducted into the National Lawn Tennis Hall of Fame and the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971.