By Teresa Brummett
Lamp staff
When kids are at the age of 3 years old they are usually playing with toddler toys and splashing in the tub. But for this future Olympian who was Born on September 26th, 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan that’s hardly all she was up to.
For the youngest of the two famous Williams sisters by the age of 3 years old Serena was starting her fierce tennis training.
Her father Richard Williams could tell that the life of a good future for his daughters wasn’t a high prospect where they were living. With tennis courts, full of holes and nets that if they were torn up they weren’t even there. This wasn’t the life for his girls.
Williams along with her sister Venus were up rooted when their family moved to Compton, California.
Mr. Williams wanting to see both of their dreams come true moved the family once more to Florida when he didn’t see the results he was hoping for. Although he didn’t want them to get tired of tennis he scaled back a little on their tennis schedule.
In 1991, Serena playing on the Junior U.S. tennis association tour ended up first in the 10 and under division. And by 1995 she became a pro at the early age of 14. Then just two years later she ranked 99th out of 304. Where she’s ranked just the year before.
After her high school graduation Puma shoe company approached Williams to get a shoe deal. They ended up setting up a 13 million 5-year deal almost instantly.
During the 1999-year Williams beat out her older sister to earn her first Grand Slam win, with the U.S. open title. Which set both sisters up for the future careers.
In 2002 she then won the French open and the U.S. Open then beating out her sister yet again in the finals of and Wimbledon. Less than a year later in 2003 she underwent knee surgery and later that same year mourned the death of her half-sister Yetunde Price in Los Angeles, Ca.
Williams also had her sights set on a gold medal, which came true in 2008. In the Beijing games Williams, with her sister, won her second gold during the doubles.
Stating her lack of motivation and injuries her rank slumped to 139. But change was coming in the way of a journey she made to West Africa which brought back a fire in her to renew her want for yet another win on the courts.
The Queen of the court, which is the name of her autobiography she released in 2009, brought her back to the top of the rankings.
That year Serena purchased a share in the Miami Dolphins football team and also became the first African American woman to be part owner of a NFL team.
She went on to win Wimbledon for the 3rd time and Australian open singles for the 4th. In that same year winnings both Australian open and Wimbledon in doubles matches.
On September 13th, 2009 pressure got the best of Williams when she called out another player for foot fault during a semifinal game. The outburst made headlines and Kim Clijsters claimed that Williams threatened her life which gained Williams a fine on the spot of $10,000. Although at the time Williams played it down what had actually happened.
Two months later Williams was ordered to pay another $ 82,500 to the Grand slam committee for the episode which is the largest punishment ever given against a tennis player. She was also put on probation for two years.
Although John McEnroe, whose career lasted from 1977- 1992, isn’t far behind her in fines. With tantrums, racket abuse, swearing, and arguing with officials McEnroe’s total fines added up to $69,500 during his career.
But Williams hasn’t let that stop her. Although in 2011 she was slowed down by a serious health scare when the doctors found a blood clot in one of her lungs, which kept her tennis career on hold for several months. Fans of Williams wondered if this would be the end of her career. But after having a hematoma removed she’s back.
Williams needed a change in view since she and her sister have lived very close to each other for the past few years and in December 2013 she moved to nearby area of Jupiter. Then most recently in December 2016 she became engaged to Co-founder of Reddit/Alexis Ohanian, who she started dating in 2015
As of 2017 Williams isn’t planning on slowing down. She’s once again made it to the finals of the Australian Open and won her 23rd grand slam crown beating her sister.
And with her 100 wins so far to look back at it’s not surprising that FADER magazine has called her a G.O.A.T. Athlete (Greatest Of All Time). Which is way past due if you look at records of other athletes.
But, it doesn’t matter if she’s playing singles, doubles, mixed doubles or a team competition. Williams shows how great of a professional tennis player she is with a 80 percent winning record. With sponsors like Fader, Sports Illustrated, and Nike. There’s no telling where her career will take her.
Either way, she defiantly deserves credit where credit is due. For the last few years she’s been showing girls and women out there that you can do whatever you put your mind to. And all it takes is determination and a little bit of hard work to achieve your goals.
Teresa Brummett can be reached at [email protected].
