| Betty Ann KENNEDY |
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Nata nel 1930 a Shreveport in Louisiana dove vive con il marito Jack, è una Woman World Grand Master ed una ACBL Grand Life Master, che ha ricoperto molte cariche federali, otre ad essere, una delle più forti bridgiste del mondo.
Ha quattro figli che l'anno tenuta lontana dal bridge fino al 1970 ma da quando ha ripreso a giocare ha collezionato nel suo prestigioso palmares, 3 Venice Cup (1974, 1976, 2003), il Mondiale Ladies del 1982 e le Olimpiadi femminili del 1984.
Dopo aver formato per oltre 20 anni una delle più forti coppie di Categoria con Carol Sanders, ha cominciato a giocare con Kathie Wei Sender.
Sul piano nazionale la Kennedy ha vinto molti titoli regionali e nazionali tra i quali ricordiamo il Wernher Trophey del 1973 ed il Whitehead del 1993.
Betty è anche una delle sole 7 atlete al mondo che si sono potute fregiare della prestigiosa Triple Crown (Venice Cup, Olimpiadi Femminili e Mondiale a Coppie Ladies).
Ancora oggi gioca con passione e nel 2005 ha ricevuto l'onore di far parte della Hall of Fame del bridge.
Betty Ann Kennedy of Shreveport LA, USA - 1930. Glamorous, daring,
skillful, aggressive — Betty Ann Kennedy announced her arrival on the national
bridge scene in 1960 with a victory in the National Mixed Teams and a
second-place finish in the Women’s Pairs. Taking time from her bridge activities
over the next decade to marry and raise children, she returned to championship
play in 1970, with the specific intent of winning a world championship.
She formed a partnership with Carol Sanders, which was among the longest and most successful partnerships in bridge history. Over the course of their 26-year reign, they stood in the forefront of women’s bridge, winning 13 NABC titles and four world championships. Betty Ann attempted a retirement from top-level competition in 1995, but she was lured back in 1999 by Kathie Wei-Sender, with whom she had a successful second career — winning four additional NABC titles and the 2003 Venice Cup.
Evaluating her performance in the final of the Venice Cup, Eric Kokish wrote in 2003 World Bridge Championships — Monte Carlo, "Kennedy was a standout, doing virtually nothing wrong." In 2000, she made a successful debut as a non-playing captain, piloting the U.S. Senior Team, to victory at the inaugural World Senior Championship in Maastricht, the Netherlands.
A resident of Shreveport LA, Betty Ann is a recipient of the Louisiana Hall of Fame Award in 1993 (the second woman to be chosen). Kennedy and her late husband, John (Jack), also are members of the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Hall of Fame. Jack was a leading player in his own right. They have four children and a grandson.
When not traveling the bridge world, Kennedy teaches bridge at her church, First United Methodist Church in Downtown Shreveport. She also plays weekly at the Shreveport Bridge Association.
Whether at a world championship or during a weekly game at the Shreveport Bridge Association, Betty Ann has retained the glamour and daring and skill that have been her hallmark. She is equally well known for her unfailing graciousness and charm at the table — to partners and opponents alike.