However, living in Compton posed a problem for the dedicated father, who was determined to turn Serena and Venus into pro athletes, since the area was riddled with gangs who wouldn’t let the Williams sisters use the local tennis courts.
He spent years feuding with the gangs in an attempt to gain access to the courts, and he once got into a physical altercation with some of them that was so brutal, it left him with numerous broken ribs and 10 teeth knocked out.
‘It had taken two years and almost destroyed my body and my spirit,’ he wrote in his 2014 memoir, Black and White: The Way I See It, about eventually gaining control of the courts. ‘But in that moment, none of that mattered. What mattered was the courts were ours.’
Serena started playing tennis at age three, and her father was very hard on her, often yelling mean things at her and her sister in an attempt to strengthen them.
Richard spent years feuding with local gangs in an attempt to gain access to the town’s tennis courts, and he once got into a physical altercation that was so brutal, it left him with numerous broken ribs and 10 teeth knocked out. Serena is seen in 1991
Serena (seen in 1990) later recalled having to work harder than her sister at first, due to her smaller size. She said: ‘I think that taught me how to be mentally tough because Venus used to win her matches really fast and I would be out there grinding’
‘In order to be successful you must prepare for the unexpected – and I wanted to prepare for that,’ he told
Serena told Uninterrupted’s Kneading Dough that while she grew up in poverty – sharing a two bedroom house with her parents and six siblings – she never ‘felt broke.’
‘I never ever, ever felt broke. Looking back, I’m like, “Wow.” We lived in a two-bedroom house with seven people,’ she said.
‘I don’t know how my parents were able to make me feel that way, but they did, and it was special. So I never felt when I came into money that I needed to go buy this because I never wanted anything. So it was a great way.’
Richard’s determination to turn his daughters into star tennis players inspired the 2021 Academy Award winning movie King Richard, which starred Will Smith and Jon Bernthal.
By the time she was nine, the family decided to relocate again to West Palm Beach, Florida, so that Serena and Venus could train with acclaimed tennis coach Rick Macci.
‘What blew me away about Venus and Serena was the burning desire,’ Rick told the Palm Beach Post about working with the sisters in 2017. ‘Almost like, “I got to get every ball, I’m not letting anything get past me.”‘
Rick recalled their father pushing them by going out of his way to make their training more difficult.
‘Half the time he wouldn’t want new balls, he would use bad balls so the girls would have to run faster and bend lower,’ he explained. ‘He’d throw a beer bottle in the back of the court just so there’d be broken glass.’
Serena’s former coach, Rick Macci recalled their father pushing them by going out of his way to make their training more diffi
However, living in Compton posed a problem for the dedicated father, who was determined to turn Serena and Venus into pro athletes, since the area was riddled with gangs who wouldn’t let the Williams sisters use the local tennis courts.
He spent years feuding with the gangs in an attempt to gain access to the courts, and he once got into a physical altercation with some of them that was so brutal, it left him with numerous broken ribs and 10 teeth knocked out.
‘It had taken two years and almost destroyed my body and my spirit,’ he wrote in his 2014 memoir, Black and White: The Way I See It, about eventually gaining control of the courts. ‘But in that moment, none of that mattered. What mattered was the courts were ours.’
Serena started playing tennis at age three, and her father was very hard on her, often yelling mean things at her and her sister in an attempt to strengthen them.
Richard spent years feuding with local gangs in an attempt to gain access to the town’s tennis courts, and he once got into a physical altercation that was so brutal, it left him with numerous broken ribs and 10 teeth knocked out. Serena is seen in 1991
Serena (seen in 1990) later recalled having to work harder than her sister at first, due to her smaller size. She said: ‘I think that taught me how to be mentally tough because Venus used to win her matches really fast and I would be out there grinding’
‘In order to be successful you must prepare for the unexpected – and I wanted to prepare for that,’ he told
Serena told Uninterrupted’s Kneading Dough that while she grew up in poverty – sharing a two bedroom house with her parents and six siblings – she never ‘felt broke.’
‘I never ever, ever felt broke. Looking back, I’m like, “Wow.” We lived in a two-bedroom house with seven people,’ she said.
‘I don’t know how my parents were able to make me feel that way, but they did, and it was special. So I never felt when I came into money that I needed to go buy this because I never wanted anything. So it was a great way.’
Richard’s determination to turn his daughters into star tennis players inspired the 2021 Academy Award winning movie King Richard, which starred Will Smith and Jon Bernthal.
By the time she was nine, the family decided to relocate again to West Palm Beach, Florida, so that Serena and Venus could train with acclaimed tennis coach Rick Macci.
‘What blew me away about Venus and Serena was the burning desire,’ Rick told the Palm Beach Post about working with the sisters in 2017. ‘Almost like, “I got to get every ball, I’m not letting anything get past me.”‘
Rick recalled their father pushing them by going out of his way to make their training more difficult.
‘Half the time he wouldn’t want new balls, he would use bad balls so the girls would have to run faster and bend lower,’ he explained. ‘He’d throw a beer bottle in the back of the court just so there’d be broken glass.’
Serena’s former coach, Rick Macci recalled their father pushing them by going out of his way to make their training more difficult, claiming he threw broken glass onto the court once. Serena is seen with her dad in 1991
Rick admitted that he thought Serena would Competitive Programming this girl was. I told Richard one of two things was going to happen: Sh last year, while reflecting on the moment.
‘It was so hard. I’ll never forget driving back, and [sister] Yetunde was there, and I remember just getting in the car and I was just bawling. I was at the gas station, there was no celebration, and I was just crying and crying and crying.’
She also wrote in an essay for Times, ‘This haunted me for a long time. It haunted Venus and our family as well. But most of all, it angered and saddened my father.
‘He dedicated his whole life to prepping us for this incredible journey, and there he had to sit and watch his daughter being taunted, sparking cold memories of his experiences growing up in the South.’
Most recently, Serena has unfortunately faced a series of losses. In 2021, she lost at the Australian Open against Naomi Osaka. She was also defeated by Nadia Podoroska at the Italian Open, while injuries forced her to withdraw from Wimbledon and the US Open that year.
Earlier this year, she competed in Wimbledon but fell in the first round to Harmony Tan. She recently earned her first win in over a year – 430 days, to be exact – after beating Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-3, 6-4 at the women’s National Bank Open in Toronto.
‘I’m just happy to get a win,’ she said afterwards. ‘It’s been a very long time, I forgot what that felt like.’
Serena’s other endeavors: How the athlete ventured out into the clothing industry and made a major name for herself in the world of fashion
Aside from her major tennis career, Serena has also earned a profit from her numerous sponsorship deals – including one with Nike that she signed in 2004 for $40 million. She is seen in July 2022
Serena (seen in 2022) has also landed endorsement deals with brands like Gatorade, Delta Airlines, Pepsi, OPI, Tampax, Intel, and Chase Bank, among others, and she serves as the Chief Sporting Officer for luxury car company Aston Martin
Aside from her major tennis career, Serena has also earned a profit from her numerous sponsorship deals – including one with Nike that she signed in 2004 for $40 million.
She has also flourished in the fashion industry, launching numerous clothing lines, and starred in a reality show with her sister in 2005. She also penned her own autobiography and acted in a few TV shows
She has also landed endorsement deals with brands like Gatorade, Delta Airlines, Pepsi, OPI, Tampax, Intel, and Chase Bank, among others, and she serves as the Chief Sporting Officer for luxury car company Aston Martin.
She has also flourished in the fashion industry, launching her own clothing line in 2004 called Aneres, which is her first name backwards.
She has also dropped a series of handbags and jewelry pieces under her brand Signature Statement. She also helmed a sustainable fashion line called S by Serena in 2019.
However, her bold fashion choices have also caused backlash for the star. In 2018, she stepped onto the court wearing a custom-made black catsuit while competing at the French Open, and while the outfit was beloved by fans, it sparked controversy after the French Tennis Federation claimed she ‘went too far’ with the look and that it didn’t ‘respect the game and the place.’
The all-black, figure-hugging ensemble – which resembled something a superhero might wear – was actually designed to prevent blood clots, but it was branded as a dress code violation by the Federation.
‘I love when fashion becomes a vehicle for sharing a powerful message,’ she later said in a statement.
She had all eyes on her once again when she donned a tutu dress designed by Off-White’s Virgil Abloh in collaboration with Nike at the US Open months later.
She paired the eye-popping look with fishnet tights and sparkly sneakers, and her outfit quickly went viral.
‘Serena Williams was told she wasn’t allowed to wear her Black Panther catsuit back to the French Open because she had to “respect the game.” So she showed up in a tutu,’ one person wrote.
Another added, ‘Sometimes you need to give the patriarchy the middle finger. Other times you need to wear a tutu. @SerenaWilliams, you absolute goddess.’
The athlete landed her own reality show alongside her sister, called Serena and Venus, which aired for one season in 2005.
She has also tried her hand at acting and has guest starred in numerous shows including The Simpsons, Law and Order: SVU, and ER.
In 2018, Serena stepped onto the court wearing a custom-made black catsuit while competing at the French Open, and the French Tennis Federation claimed she ‘went too far’ with the look and that it didn’t ‘respect the game and the place’
She had all eyes on her once again when she donned a tutu dress designed by Off-White’s Virgil Abloh in collaboration with Nike at the US Open months later
She and her sister wrote a book together, called Venus & Serena: Serving From The Hip: 10 Rules For Living, Loving and Winning, in 2005. She also dropped an autobiography, entitled On the Line, in 2009.
Williams took home $45.9 million before taxes in 2021 thanks to her corporate partnerships, brands, investments through her firm Serena Ventures, and creative projects, including the film King Richard, which she executive produced.
She also sits on the board of SurveyMonkey’s parent, Momentive, and in January 2022, she joined NFT company Sorare as an advisor.
Her first children’s book is due to be released in September 2022; she also owns a small stake in the Miami Dolphins.
Now, she plans to dedicate some of her time creating more business opportunities for women.
‘A few years ago, I was at a conference organized by JPMorgan Chase, where I watched a talk between Jamie Dimon and Caryn Seidman-Becker, the CEO of the security company Clear,’ she wrote in Vogue.
‘Caryn explained that less than 2 per cent of all VC money went to women. I figured that she misspoke. I thought, There’s no way that 98 per cent of that capital is going to men.
‘I approached her afterward, and she confirmed it. I kind of understood then and there that someone who looks like me needs to start writing the big checks.’
A deep dive into Serena’s personal life: How she almost lost her life while giving birth to her daughter in 2017
Serena met her future husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, in 2015 when they were both staying at the same hotel in Rome, Italy. The pair (pictured in July) tied the knot in November 2017
The couple welcomed a daughter together, named Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., in September 2017, but Serena nearly lost her life after giving birth
Serena met her future husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, in 2015 when they were both staying at the same hotel in Rome, Italy.
He proposed at the same place they first met one year later, in December 2016, and the pair tied the knot in November 2017 in New Orleans during a stunning Disney-themed wedding.
Their nuptials were attended by a slew of celebrity guests including Beyoncé, Anna Wintour, Kelly Rowland, and Kim Kardashian.
‘Comparing calendars isn’t romantic, but at the start of every year, Serena and I map out our schedules so that, ideally, there isn’t more than a week that we go without seeing each other,’ Alexis told Glamour in 2019 when asked how they make their romance work despite both of their busy careers.
She developed an embolism, a clot in one of my arteries, and a hematoma – a collection of blood outside the blood vessels – in her abdomen, and needed four surgeries
The couple welcomed a daughter together, named Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., in September 2017, but managing being pregnant with her athletic career wasn’t easy for the sport