Photo: Joe Buglewicz, Getty Images/AFP/Profimedia
When 18-year-old Czechoslovak tennis player Martina Navrátilová sought political asylum in New York during the 1975 US Open, she became overnight a symbol of resistance to communist rule and a rising star of world tennis. She lost her homeland but built an extraordinary career, winning a record 59 Grand Slam titles. Today, Navrátilová celebrates her 70th birthday.
The story of one of the greatest female athletes of all time began in what was then Czechoslovakia.
See more here.