On Monday, Serena Williams outlasted Nuria Parrizas-Diaz in the first-round of the Canadian Open. Williams’ 6-3, 6-4 triumph not only marked her pro first victory in more than a year, but it will ultimately be one of her last. On Tuesday, Williams wrote an in-depth essay announcing that she will end her career after the upcoming U.S. Open in New York.
“I’ve been reluctant to admit to myself or anyone else that I have to move on from playing tennis. Alexis, my husband, and I have hardly talked about it; it’s like a taboo topic. I can’t even have this conversation with my mom and dad. It’s like it’s not real until you say it out loud,” Williams wrote.
“It comes up, I get an uncomfortable lump in my throat, and I start to cry. The only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist!”
As Serena Williams steps away from the sport of tennis, she will turn her attention toward her family and business ventures. She has recently earned the title of Chief Sporting Officer at Aston Martin and worked on the board of directors at Survey Monkey. Moving forward, she will work to expand her venture capital firm, Serena Ventures.
“I have never liked the word retirement. It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me. I’ve been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution,” she continued.
“I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me. A few years ago I quietly started Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm. Soon after that, I started a family. I want to grow that family.”
Serena Williams will walk away as one of the most accomplished athletes of the 21st century. She has amassed a career record of 855-153. Along the way, she has picked up seven Australian Open titles, three French Open championships, seven Wimbledon titles and 73 overall titles. She has also earned 23 doubles titles with a record of 192-34. Not to be forgotten, she picked up four Olympic Gold Medals.
The 2022 U.S. Open is set to begin on August 29, 2022.
In Vogue’s September issue, @serenawilliams prepares to say farewell to tennis on her own terms and in her own words. “It’s the hardest thing that I could ever imagine,” she says. “I don’t want it to be over, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s next” https://t.co/6Zr0UXVTH1 pic.twitter.com/YtGtcc18a9
— Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) August 9, 2022
