On
Sunday, Serena Williams won her 18th Grand Slam and proved once
again that she is “Queen of the Courts”. The Women’s Tennis Association ranked
her number one in women’s single’s tennis on 6 separate occasions. She recently
won her 6th U. S. Open championship. She’s earned more than $50
million dollars in prize money, is worth an estimated $100 million and this
year made Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people.
“Straight
outta Compton!”, Serena and her sister Venus hit the pro tennis circuit 19
years ago. They were strong, unapologetic and very, very good. They steamrolled
over class and racial barriers and put their own stamp on the game. Now, almost
two decades later, Serena has won 32 major titles, has held all four Grand Slam
titles simultaneously (in 2003-03). The Grand Slam titles include the Australian Open in mid January, the French Open in May/June, Wimbledon in June/July and the U. S. Open in August/September. Serena has also won four Olympic gold medals. She’s
has been ranked No. 1 for more than 200 consecutive weeks, surpassed only by Steffi
Graf (377 weeks), Martina Navratilova (332 weeks), Chris Evert (260 weeks), and
Martina Hingis (209 weeks).
Recently,
Serena was asked “now that you’ve won so much, do you feel more or less
pressure when you step on the court”. She said, “I probably feel a little bit more
pressure”, adding “I try to look at it like I don’t have to do anything else. I
don’t have to win another match...it takes the pressure away and helps me relax”.
Don’t be
fooled though, there’s more to this dynamic woman than her life in tennis.
No one
can stay on top forever, and Serena’s branched out, becoming an accomplished
businesswoman, negotiating equity deals, and securing an ownership stake in the
Miami Dolphins. She opened two girls schools in Kenya. She’s a fashion
designer, with lines for the Home Shopping Network and an endorsement deal with
Nike. You can get a sense of her personality by following her on Instagram,
Twitter or Facebook. In spite of her image as “power player” and tough
businesswoman, she can be laid-back and funny. You can tell she’ comfortable in
her own skin. She’s weathered her share of challenges from health woes over the
years to the shooting death of one of her sisters. She calls upon her close,
tennis loving family, the ship that keeps her afloat. And helps her stand tall
as America’s reigning queen of tennis.
Congratulations Serena and best wishes for continued success in your endeavors.
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