Martina Navratilova Pops the Question at U.S. Open 
 
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 "Love" was a good thing for a change at Saturday's U.S. Open tennis championships.Tennis legend Martina Navratilova , 57, got engaged to girlfriend Julia Lemigova, 42, in a moment that was telecast on the Jumbotron during the day's play at New York's Arthur Ashe stadium.Navratilova popped the question during a break while she was providing color commentary for the men's matches.The tennis legend was being interviewed by Ken Solomon in the Tennis Channel suite when she turned to Lemigova and said she would be asking the questions this time. Navratilova got down on one knee and offered her girlfriend a diamond-studded ring.Lemigova teared up before embracing Navratilova and saying yes. The pair then popped the cork on a magnum of Moët & Chandon Brut Imperial champagne to toast to their future together.The 59-time Grand Slam winner, who won a history-making 1,442 singles matches, has been dating Lemigova, a past Miss USSR, since 2006, according to reports Czech-born Navratilova, a former Dancing with the Stars contestant , beat breast cancer in 2010. 

 NEW YORK (AP) — Tennis great Martina Navratilova proposed to her girlfriend on the big screen of Arthur Ashe Stadium between the U.S. Open men's semifinals. 
 
 Navratilova popped the question to Julia Lemigova in the Tennis Channel suite Saturday, drawing a loud cheer from the crowd. 
 
 "I was very nervous," Navratilova said later. "It came off. She said yes. It was kind of an out-of-body experience. You've seen people propose at sporting events before, in movies, in real life. Here it was happening to me. It was like I was watching myself do it." 
 
 The 57-year-old Navratilova won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, a mark she shares with Chris Evert. Serena Williams will try to match it in Sunday's women's final. 
 
 Navratilova said somebody suggested she propose during a changeover in the first match between Kei Nishikori and Novak Djokovic, but she didn't want to disturb the players in any way. The only problem was that Navratilova was later scheduled to play a "Champions" doubles match with Jana Novotna against Tracy Austin and Gigi Fernandez. She tried unsuccessfully to get the start postponed without telling anybody why, so she was fretting that the Nishikori-Djokovic match would go five sets. Fortunately, it ended in four. 
 
 After the triumph in her personal life, Navratilova was also victorious in doubles. 
 
 When Navratilova walked into the locker room to get ready for the match, Austin didn't know anything about what had just happened. The two chatted for a few minutes before Navratilova mentioned the proposal in passing. 
 
 Austin then made her re-enact the whole thing. 
 
 Navratilova said she and Lemigova would prefer to get married in Florida, where they live. A federal judge ruled last month that the state's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional, but Florida officials are appealing. 
 
 Navratilova reminisced about her 1981 U.S. Open finals loss to Austin, when the fans gave her a long ovation as the runner-up, as the first time she felt accepted as a newly minted American citizen and a gay woman. Thirty-three years later, gay couples can marry in 19 states and the District of Columbia, and Navratilova's proposal got another big cheer from the U.S. Open crowd.
– Cue the love puns: It was a memorable US Open yesterday for Martina Navratilova, who got engaged in a very public way. As People reports, the tennis great, 57, was being interviewed when she announced she would be doing the questioning, and got down on one knee and asked girlfriend Julia Lemigova to marry her. A few tears, a yes, and some champagne followed. The whole thing was broadcast on the Jumbotron at Arthur Ashe Stadium. "I was very nervous," Navratilova told the AP. "It was kind of an out-of-body experience. You've seen people propose at sporting events before, in movies, in real life. Here it was happening to me. It was like I was watching myself do it." The couple plan to marry in Florida.