Venus Ebony Starr Williams is an American professional tennis player, one of the greatest athletes in this sport, who, together with her sister Serena Williams, has opened a new era of powerful and athletic women's tennis.
Venus Williams: A Short Biography
Born June 17, 1980 in Lynnwood, California, in the family of Richard and Orasin Williams, and became their first common daughter. Together with her younger sister Serena, thanks to her strength and excellent athleticism, Venus forever changed women's tennis. After becoming a professional in 1994, she won 7 Grand Slam titles, including a 5-time win at the Wimbledon tournament and a 2-time US Open.
Venus Williams was introduced to tennis by her father. Richard Williams, a former Louisiana farmer, drawing information from specialist literature and videos, taught his daughters various aspects of playing on Los Angeles public courts located near their home in Compton, where the family moved not so long ago.
Moving to a new place of residence was not accidental. Since there was high criminal activity, Richard Williams wanted to introduce his daughters to the terrible prospects of life if they did not work hard and did not receive an education. In this situation, on the courts, pitted with holes, and sometimes without nets, Venus and Serena formed tennis skills and resistance to harsh climatic conditions.
Professional career
By 10 years, Williams' feed rate exceeded 160 km / h, thanks to which she won the United States Tennis Association junior tournament dry. On October 31, 1994, she became a professional, proving her willingness when she beat Sean Stafford in the Bank of the West Classic tournament in California in her first match.
This was an important moment in the biography of Venus Williams, and in the life of her family, in particular Richard, who was not afraid to inform the whole tennis world that his daughters were going to change the game. “This is a ghetto!” He cried out at a press conference after Williams won.
Success
In 1997, Venus Williams became the first “seedless" US Open finalist since the beginning of the Open Era in 1968, losing only to Martina Hingis. In 2000, she won both Wimbledon and US Open, which made it possible to conclude a 40 millionth advertising contract with Reebok. She then defended her titles in 2001.
At the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Williams won the gold medal in singles, and then, together with Serena, took 2nd place in the doubles. The sisters ascribe their successes in tennis, whether they are performances on one or opposite sides of the court. Together, the pair won 14 Grand Slam titles and reached the finals more than 20 times.
Due to a protracted wrist injury in 2006, Venus Williams was able to take part in only a few competitions, but she returned to form in 2007, having won in singles at Wimbledon. The American tennis player repeated her victory a year later, bypassing Serena and winning the 5th Wimbledon tournament in her career. A few months later, the Williams sisters teamed up to win the doubles title at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Life in the fight
In 2011, Venus Williams was diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome, an autoimmune disease that caused her to quickly get tired and feel pain. The American tennis player switched to a vegetarian diet and changed her training schedule to increase the recovery period. This method was successful - in 2012, he and Serena won the Grand Slam tournament for the 13th time. The sisters continued to dominate, beating Czech tennis stars Andrea Glavachkova and Lucia Hradecko in the finals of the pair competition at the 2012 London Olympics, which gave them a total of 4 gold medals. In the fall of that year, Venus Williams won its first WTA title in 2 years.
The American tennis player showed that she can still defeat her rivals, reaching the finals of the Rogers Cup and Coupe Banque Nationale in 2014. At the beginning of 2015, she was the 46th time in the best single-player tournament ASB Classic, beating Caroline Wozniacki seeded under the first number . In the summer of the same year, a tennis star entered the fourth round of Wimbledon, showing the best result since 2011, and then lost to Serena on the Central court. After that, the American tennis player reached the quarterfinals of the US Open, but again failed to defeat her sister in a tense 3-set match.
The following year, at Wimbledon, 36-year-old Venus Williams became the oldest Grand Slam semi-finalist since Martina Navratilova in 1994, but was defeated by Angelica Kerber. She then teamed up with Serena to win the doubles title - their 6th in a row at Wimbledon.
Rio 2016 Olympics
Fans of the American tennis player were shocked by the news that the sisters Williams sown under the first number dropped out of the first round of the women's doubles tournament at the Summer Olympic Games in Brazil after losing to the Czech duo Lucy Shafarzhova and Barbora Strikova. Before that, they had perfect statistics of Olympic doubles matches - 15 wins and not a single defeat.
Also losing in the 1st round singles, Venus Williams tried to save her performance by late entry into the competition of mixed pairs. However, her bet on the 5th Olympic gold medal did not materialize when she and her partner Rajiv Ram lost in the final to Bethany Mattek Sands and Jack Sok.
Return to the top five
With the 1st racket of the world (from September 11, 2017 ) - the Spanish Garbine Muguruza - Venus Williams met in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open and in the Wimbledon finals. In both cases, the American tennis player was defeated. Nevertheless, these and other results of performances for the first time in many years allowed her to rise to 5th place in the world ranking.
Venus Williams: personal life
In addition to the court, the American tennis player is fond of many other things. She took drawing lessons and received a certificate from an interior designer. Venus Williams created a clothing line called EleVen, as well as a women's collection for Wilson's Leather. In addition, she opened her own design company V Starr Interiors, which is engaged in the design of premises throughout the United States.
In 2009, Venus and Serena Williams were the first African Americans to acquire shares in the Miami Dolphins NFL team. The following year, Venus Williams co-authored the New York Times bestselling book, The Way to Victory: Business Leaders, Artists, Doctors, and Other Seers on How Sports Can Help Reach the Top of Their Profession, for which she interviewed successful people such as Sir Richard Branson and Condoleezza Rice, asking about their early sports experience.
In 2015, Venus Williams received a degree in business management from Indiana University and plans to become a master.
From Wimbledon 2007 to 2010, she met professional golf player Hank Kuhn. Currently, her partner is the Cuban model Elio Pease, whom she met on the set for her fashion line EleVen.
Interesting Facts
- Venus Williams set feed speed records in three of four Grand Slam tournaments. In the first round of the 2007 US Open, she sent the ball at a speed of 208 km / h.
- 02/25/2002 she became the first African American to enter the 1st place in the world ranking.
- The American tennis player was the first racket in the world three times, generally holding on top for 11 weeks.
- She reached the finals of the Grand Slam singles 16 times and won 7 times in them (5 times at Wimbledon and 2 at the US Open).
- Venus and Serena Williams won the title 14 times in the Grand Slam doubles.
- The American tennis player received Olympic gold medals four times: once in singles and three times in doubles.
- Venus Williams is Jehovah's Witness and often praises God after winning a tennis match.
- She supports a strict vegetarian diet that helps her cope with Sjögren’s syndrome diagnosed in her.
- The champion also takes an active part in a number of social projects, including collaboration with UNESCO to promote gender equality around the world.