In Pictures: Martina Navratilova joined by wife Julia Lemigova & Chris Evert as American icon celebrates 68th birthday with her ‘favorite women’
Martina Navratilova went out for dinner with her wife Julia Lemigova and her former rival and now friend Chris Evert to celebrate her 68th birthday. Navratilova called the two her ‘favorite women’.
Evert and Navratilova used to be the fiercest of rivals during their careers.
However, since retirement, the two women have formed a deep bond and have become great friends. Navratilova married her wife Julia Lemigova, a Russian former model, in 2014 and they have been together since.
To celebrate her 68th birthday, Martina Navratilova had a fun dinner with Evert and Lemigova. She posted photos with both women on X (formerly Twitter):
“Celebrated my birthday last night with two of my favorite women:),” she posted.
Evert also penned a heartfelt message on X (formerly Twitter) to honor the American icon on her birthday, stating how her friend’s tenacity continues to inspire her even after so many years.
“Happy birthday to my great friend (and rival!) Martina Navratilova who always has my back and continues to inspire me with her strength and resilience. Love our friendship,” Chris Evert wrote.
Julia Lemigova also posted some highlights from the birthday dinner on Instagram while wishing her wife.
“Happy Birthday to my Wife, Best Friend and Partner in life! ❤️. ”
Evert spoke about how they realized their bond during the twilight years of their careers.
“I know that you’re only a phone call away. We have such a rich history of, again, competing, and then, especially towards the end of our career, we became very, very close because we realized that we weren’t only competitors, that we were people with feelings as well, and emotions.”
She later told Navratilova how she was a person that she could always count on.
“You’re one of my best friends and I know that I can always count on you.”
Navratilova seconded that by stating that she could call Evert at any hour and she would be ready to help her.
“We always had that. I knew always that I could call you at three in the morning and say, ‘Chris I need you’. And you would ask, ‘Where are you?’”
Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert faced each other 80 times in their illustrious careers, an Open Era record for both men and women. Navratilova edged the head-to-head 43-37.
