Does Venus Williams Still Play Tennis?
Does Venus Williams Still Play Tennis? The answer may surprise you.
Early Life and Career
Williams is born in Lynwood, California
Venus Williams was born on June 17, 1980, in Lynwood, California, one of five daughters of Richard Williams and Oracene Price. She began playing tennis when she was four years old. When she was nine years old, her father pulled her and her sister Serena out of tennis lessons and began coaching them himself. He had grand ambitions for his girls: he wanted them to be the greatest tennis players in the world.
To that end, he put them on a rigorous practice schedule: they would play tennis for several hours every day, then do physical training. They were not allowed to go to parties or do other activities that most kids their age did. People in their neighborhood called them the Williams sisters and treated them like celebrities.
Williams turns professional in 1994
Venus Williams turns professional in 1994 at the age of 14. She signs a management contract with IMG, who also gets her a clothing deal with Reebok. Williams competes in her first professional tournament in October of that year, reaching the second round of the Bell Challenge in Quebec. A month later, she reaches the semifinals of the tournaments in Oakland and Luxembourg. By the end of the year, she is ranked No. 304 in the world.
Williams wins her first WTA title in 1997
In February 1997, Venus Williams became the first African American woman to earn a No. 1 world ranking in tennis history. She accomplished this after winning her first WTA title at the Moorilla International in Hobart, Australia. A few months later, Williams made it to the final of the Lipton Championships (now known as the Miami Open), where she lost to Martina Hingis. This was just the beginning of a successful career for Venus Williams.
In 1998, Williams won her first Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon. She defeated defending champion Hingis in the finals in straight sets. Later that year, Venus captured her second consecutive Grand Slam singles title at the U.S. Open. She defeated Lindsay Davenport in straight sets in the finals to become only the second African American woman to win a U.S. Open singles title (after Althea Gibson).
Williams would go on to win several more Grand Slam titles over the next few years and solidify her status as one of the best tennis players in the world.
Success
Venus Williams is one of the all-time greats in women’s tennis. She has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, fourteen Grand Slam women’s doubles titles, and two Olympic gold medals. She is also the oldest No. 1-ranked player in WTA history. At the age of 37, she is still going strong and is a force to be reckoned with on the court.
Williams wins her first Grand Slam at the 1999 French Open
Since then, Williams has gone on to win seven more Grand Slam titles, including five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. In 2000, she became only the second woman in the Open Era to hold all four Grand Slam singles titles at the same time, and she is one of only four women to have done so in history.
Williams becomes World No. 1 for the first time in 2002
Williams first became the World No. 1 on February 25, 2002, with a win over Jennifer Capriati in Doha, Qatar. This made her the second African-American woman to hold the top ranking in singles, after Althea Gibson. Williams’ ascension to the top was meteoric; prior to 2002, she had only spent four weeks total as the World No. 2 (in 2000 and 2001). At the time, she was only the fourth woman in tennis history to achieve this distinction so quickly (after Chris Evert in 1974, Martina Navratilova in 1983 and Steffi Graf in 1987). Williams thus became only the second unseeded player to begin a season as World No. 1 (after Mats Wilander in 1988).
Williams wins Wimbledon for the first time in 2002
In July of 2002, Venus Williams defeated her sister Serena in the final at Wimbledon to win her first ever Wimbledon singles title. This was a significant achievement for Venus, who had only won one Grand Slam singles title prior to this point (the US Open, in 2000). The Wimbledon victory put her atop the world rankings for the first time in her career.
Later Career
Venus Williams is an American professional tennis player who is currently ranked world No. 11 in the WTA singles rankings. She has been ranked world No. 1 by the Women’s Tennis Association on three occasions, for a total of 11 weeks. Venus Williams still plays tennis and is currently entered in the 2020 French Open.
Williams wins the 2007 Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles
In 2007, Venus won her fifth Wimbledon singles title, defeating Marion Bartoli in the final. It was a vindicating moment for Williams, who had lost in the 2006 Wimbledon final to Amélie Mauresmo. Williams dedicated her victory to her father, who was suffering from a debilitating illness. After winning Wimbledon, Williams went on to capture the U.S. Open later that year, defeating Serena in the final in straight sets.
Williams withdraws from the 2016 Rio Olympics
On July 14, 2016, it was announced that Williams had withdrawn from the 2016 Rio Olympics due to an ongoing elbow injury. In a statement released by the USTA, Williams said: “I am so honored and excited to be named to my fourth Olympic team, but unfortunately my elbow injury has gotten worse and I am not able to compete. I will be cheering and supporting all of my fellow Olympians.”
Williams wins the 2017 Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles
On July 16, 2017, Williams won her sixth Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles title, defeating German player and defending champion Angelique Kerber in straight sets. This was Williams’ first Grand Slam singles title since she won the same event in 2008, and she also became only the third woman in history to win six Wimbledon singles titles, after Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf. Furthermore, with this win, Williams regained the WTA No. 1 ranking for the first time since February 2013.
Personal Life
Venus Williams is an American professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, and is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats of women’s tennis. Williams has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, more than any other active female player.
Williams is diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome in 2011
In 2011, Williams was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that caused fatigue and joint pain. The diagnosis came after she struggled with several injuries, including a torn abdominal muscle and a sprained ankle. When she withdrew from the French Open in 2011, she released a statement saying that she had been dealing with the illness for several months.
Williams continued to play tennis after her diagnosis, but her results were mixed. She reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2012 and the semifinals of the US Open in 2012 and 2013. However, she also suffered early losses at several major tournaments, including the French Open and Wimbledon in 2012. In 2013, Williams’ ranking fell to No. 34, her lowest since 2000.
Williams made a comeback in 2014, winning her sixth Wimbledon singles title. She also reached the finals of the US Open that year, losing to Serena Williams in straight sets. In 2015, Williams won her seventh Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open. She then reached the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open later that year, losing to Serena Williams in both tournaments.
Williams gives birth to her first child in 2017
On September 1, 2017, Williams gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., with her fiancé, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.
Retirement
At the age of 39, many athletes are starting to think about retirement. For some, retirement comes at the end of a successful career. Others may retire due to injury or age. So, does Venus Williams still play tennis? Let’s take a look.
Williams announces her retirement in 2020
On September 7, 2020, Venus Williams announced that she would be retiring from professional tennis. In a post on her personal website, Williams cited the ongoing pandemic as one of the reasons for her decision to retire, saying: “I am so grateful I was able to return to the court this year. But now is the time to focus on my long term health.”
Williams first rose to prominence in the late 1990s, when she and her sister Serena Williams dominated women’s tennis. The two sisters have won a combined 31 Grand Slam singles titles, and they are widely considered to be two of the greatest tennis players of all time.
In recent years, however, Venus Williams has struggled with injuries, and she has been unable to match her earlier success on the court. Her last Grand Slam singles title came at Wimbledon in 2008, and she has not reached a major singles final since then. In 2017, she was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disorder that can cause fatigue and joint pain.
Despite her retirement from professional tennis, Venus Williams says that she plans to stay active and “continue to fight for equality.” She has been an outspoken advocate for social justice issues throughout her career, and she says that she will continue to use her platform to support causes that are important to her.
Williams plays her last match at the 2020 Australian Open
On January 27, 2020, Venus Williams played her last match at the Australian Open, losing to fellow American Sofia Kenin in the third round. The loss brought an end to Williams’ incredible 23-year career on the professional tennis circuit.
Williams burst onto the scene as a teenager in the late 1990s, quickly becoming one of the sport’s biggest stars. She won her first Grand Slam singles title at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships, and would go on to win seven more singles majors over the course of her career. In addition to her singles success, Williams was also a formidable doubles player; she won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles, including three Wimbledon titles and three Olympic gold medals.
While injuries and health problems limited Williams in recent years, she continued to compete at a high level into her 40s. Her last major singles title came at the 2017 Australian Open, while she won her last Wimbledon doubles title just last year.
Williams’ retirement leaves Serena Williams as the only active member of the “Sister Act” that dominated women’s tennis for much of the past two decades. Serena has said she plans to keep playing tennis for “several more years”, so we may not have seen the last of this legendary family on the tennis court just yet.
