Legendary tennis star Billie Jean Moffitt King and former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor were among the 16 recipients recognized by President Obama yesterday for making a difference in this world.

Obama doled out 16 Medal of Freedom Awards — America’s highest civilian honor. Other recipients included Puerto Rican-American performer Chita Rivera — whom Obama introduced by her given name, Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero. USA Today notes that the president joked that the racial-barrier-breaking, Tony Award-winning performer "knows the adversity that comes with a difficult name." Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-MA, also received a medal but he couldn’t attend, given his battle with brain cancer and that his sister, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, died Tuesday. His daughter, Kara Kennedy, accepted the medal on his behalf. 

"The recipients of the Medal of Freedom did not set out to win this or any other award," Obama said. "They did not set out in pursuit of glory or fame or riches. Rather, they set out, guided by passion, committed to hard work, aided by persistence, often with few advantages but the gifts, grace and good name God gave them."

O’Connor was honored for her 25 years on the Supreme Court and for paving the way for millions of women to achieve their dreams, not just in the legal profession. Women’s rights crusader Mary Robinson, a former United Nations official and the first female president of Ireland, also received a medal for fighting to end discrimination and suffering and being an advocate for equality and human rights around the world. Dr. Janet Davison Rowley was cited for being the first scientist to identify a chromosomal translocation as the cause of leukemia and other cancers. King was honored for helping advance the struggle for greater gender equality around the world through her sport and for her "unwavering defense of equal rights" for the gay and lesbian community. But she later told reporters Obama didn’t get any of his facts right when it came to her tennis accomplishments! But that doesn’t matter, she said, since "tennis was a platform." She also called Obama "cute."

Congratulations to all Medal of Freedom recipients!

Watch video of King talking to reporters below, from Politico: