AI Summary
5 min readThe Rivalry That Outlasted the Court
When Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova were both diagnosed with cancer within a year of each other, the coincidence struck them as almost absurd. "I can't get away from her," Evert said. "We had a 15-year career and then we got cancer at the same time." The two former tennis champions, who spent the 1970s and 1980s as each other's greatest opponents, found themselves living a short drive apart in Florida, navigating treatment side by side. Their friendship, which had gone cold for years during the peak of their rivalry, became the thing that carried them through.
Two Very Different Bodies Under Attack
Navratilova and Evert had built their careers on athletic bodies that responded to training with precision and power. Cancer treatment dismantled that foundation. For Navratilova, diagnosed with throat and breast cancer in 2022, the physical toll was severe despite a 95% cure rate. She brought a yoga mat to New York for seven weeks of treatment and barely used it. "I couldn't even do the down dog pose because I would have fallen down," she said. "I had absolutely zero strength left." Her sense of taste took nearly a year to fully return.
Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.
Read Full Summary →Free • No credit card required
Never miss an episode of Fresh Air
Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
What you'll learn
- 1 (00:00) **Introduction & Cancer Diagnosis** - Terry Gross introduces Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova as former rivals and friends, now the subject of a Netflix documentary. The interview is contextualized by their dual cancer diagnoses.
- 2 (02:05) **Facing Cancer as Former Athletes** - The pair discuss the surreal experience of having cancer simultaneously and how their athletic discipline informed their approach to treatment.
- 3 (05:46) **How They Supported Each Other** - Their long friendship meant they didn't need constant contact; a simple, reliable presence was enough.
- 4 (06:05) **Warning Signs & Diagnosis Stories** - A key segment on how each discovered their cancer, highlighting the importance of paying attention to subtle changes.
- 5 (09:45) **Watching Old Matches** - The pair reflect on watching footage of their prime for the documentary, marveling at the level of play with wooden rackets.
- 6 (14:58) **Evaluating Each Other's Strengths** - A direct analysis of their opponent's game.
- 7 (17:10) **Childhood Training & Burnout** - The athletes describe their very different paths to tennis and the early signs of burnout.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter
Follow us on Instagram
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Check out the Fresh Air Archives
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
NPR Privacy Policy
More from this podcast
Fresh Air →