"Ultimately, I'm the one out there and I make my own destiny." -Serena Williams ("Serena Williams.")
At a solid seventy kilograms and five feet and seven inches, thirty-five year old Serena Williams is one of the best and hardest working athletes in the game of tennis. Ever since entering the professional league at age fifteen, she has achieved many accomplishments, including WTA Newcomer of the year in 1998 and winning over twenty Grand Slams—a tennis competition that offers the most ranking points, media attention, and prize money in the game. Despite the lengthy list of credits to her name, Serena has been through several events that have pushed her to become the strong individual she is today. Serena was born September twenty-sixth,1981 in Saginaw, Michigan, and began extensive training for tennis at the young age of three years old. Her father, Richard, acted as her coach, while her older sister, Venus, practiced alongside her. Richard Williams always wanted his daughters to play tennis so he taught himself the rules and strategies of the game by watching videos and reading books. After realizing he could not offer specialized tennis training to his daughters, Richard relocated the entire family to Compton, California allowing Serena and Venus to attend the tennis academy of Rick Macci, where the girls could refine their skills by practicing for two hours daily. Serena’s father proceeded to resign from his position of coaching his daughters, but remained their manager and eventually limited the girls’ schedule in fear that they would not burn out too quickly. Another reason Richard moved the family to a “ghetto” neighbourhood with many “thugs” and homeless people was to also teach Serena and her four older sisters the possibilities of life if they did not work hard and receive an education. |
By 1991 Serena was ranked first in the ten and under division in the junior US Tennis Association tour, finishing with forty-six wins and only three losses in the tournament. Four years later when Serena was fourteen years old, she became pro. In 1997, Serena jumped from being ranked number 304th the previous year to an impressive ninety-ninth ranking. Following her father’s advice, she graduated high school in 1998 and quickly got a two million dollar shoe endorsement deal with Puma. Serena defeated her sister Venus in the finals of the 2002 US Open to win her first Grand Slam title. This match was not the only where the Williams sisters faced off. The following year, Serena won the French Open, US Open, and Wimbledon, beating Venus in all three final matches. Serena called these successive wins the “Serena Slam.” Over the next six years Serena continued to be a threat to fellow tennis competitors, racking up Olympic gold medals in both singles and doubles, along with several Grand Slam titles.
Although the list of Serena’s accomplishments is impressively long, the powerful and motivated athlete experienced setbacks of her own that almost cost Serena her career. Early in 2003, Serena’s half-sister Yetunde Price was murdered in Los Angeles, California. Due to this traumatic loss, along with greuling knee surgery to fix a severe injury, Serena seemed to have lost her ambition. In 2006 Serena fell through the rankings to a shocking 139th in the world. She then travelled to West Africa where she regained her motivation and in 2009, released an autobiography called Queen of the Court. Shortly after returning from Africa, Serena won the Australian Open for the fourth time, Wimbledon for the third time, and doubles matches in the two tournaments, reclaiming her number one rank in the world. But in September 2009, the tennis star exploded at a lineswoman for a foot-fault called near the end of a semi-final loss to Kim Clijsters, who would go on to win the tournament, at the US Open. Serena was initially fined $10 000 by the US Tennis Association, and that following November was ordered to pay $82 000 to the Grand Slam committee, in addition to a two year probation. This was the largest punishment ever given to a tennis player. She moved on from this incident to win the Australian Open in singles and doubles, along with her fourth Wimbledon championship as well.
As recent events seemed to be improving for the athlete, her health was deteriorating. She developed a blood clot in one of her lungs in 2011, which required several complicated procedures to repair, keeping her from playing tennis for many months. Spectators began to wonder if this injury might force Serena to retire, but Williams never stumbled. In September 2011, Serena’s health improved enough to return to the sport to compete in the US Open but unfortunately lost to Samantha Stosur in the finals. Not letting the loss startle her, Serena won her fifth Wimbledon title and a gold medal in the Summer Olympics for the United States. By September 2012, Serena had totalled fifteen Grand Slam titles in her seventeen year-long career.
Serena Williams is a dominant competitor in tennis, with over twenty-three Grand Slam titles to her name. She has suffered defeat, but has used the experiences to further her drive to be the best. In 2017, she is engaged to Alexis Ohanian, expecting a baby, has held a number one world ranking eight times from 2002 to present, and has a net worth of approximately 150 million dollars. Her accomplishments have not come by easily, as she has needed to reevaluate her game after devastating losses and also has needed to regain ambition and motivation. Having suffered several health scares and a major personal tragedy, Serena is a perfect example that when adversity is channelled positively and thoughtfully, along with diligent commitment, success most definitely can be achieved.
Although the list of Serena’s accomplishments is impressively long, the powerful and motivated athlete experienced setbacks of her own that almost cost Serena her career. Early in 2003, Serena’s half-sister Yetunde Price was murdered in Los Angeles, California. Due to this traumatic loss, along with greuling knee surgery to fix a severe injury, Serena seemed to have lost her ambition. In 2006 Serena fell through the rankings to a shocking 139th in the world. She then travelled to West Africa where she regained her motivation and in 2009, released an autobiography called Queen of the Court. Shortly after returning from Africa, Serena won the Australian Open for the fourth time, Wimbledon for the third time, and doubles matches in the two tournaments, reclaiming her number one rank in the world. But in September 2009, the tennis star exploded at a lineswoman for a foot-fault called near the end of a semi-final loss to Kim Clijsters, who would go on to win the tournament, at the US Open. Serena was initially fined $10 000 by the US Tennis Association, and that following November was ordered to pay $82 000 to the Grand Slam committee, in addition to a two year probation. This was the largest punishment ever given to a tennis player. She moved on from this incident to win the Australian Open in singles and doubles, along with her fourth Wimbledon championship as well.
As recent events seemed to be improving for the athlete, her health was deteriorating. She developed a blood clot in one of her lungs in 2011, which required several complicated procedures to repair, keeping her from playing tennis for many months. Spectators began to wonder if this injury might force Serena to retire, but Williams never stumbled. In September 2011, Serena’s health improved enough to return to the sport to compete in the US Open but unfortunately lost to Samantha Stosur in the finals. Not letting the loss startle her, Serena won her fifth Wimbledon title and a gold medal in the Summer Olympics for the United States. By September 2012, Serena had totalled fifteen Grand Slam titles in her seventeen year-long career.
Serena Williams is a dominant competitor in tennis, with over twenty-three Grand Slam titles to her name. She has suffered defeat, but has used the experiences to further her drive to be the best. In 2017, she is engaged to Alexis Ohanian, expecting a baby, has held a number one world ranking eight times from 2002 to present, and has a net worth of approximately 150 million dollars. Her accomplishments have not come by easily, as she has needed to reevaluate her game after devastating losses and also has needed to regain ambition and motivation. Having suffered several health scares and a major personal tragedy, Serena is a perfect example that when adversity is channelled positively and thoughtfully, along with diligent commitment, success most definitely can be achieved.
It is your reaction to adversity, not the adversity itself, that determines how your life’s story will develop.”
-Dieter F. Uchtdorf