Today marks the end of an era for tennis, as Serena Williamsone of the biggest and most respected names in sport, has announced that it is time for her to retire.
In a emotional essay published on Vogue, Williams wrote candidly about where she is in her life and the balance she plays every day, trying to be both the world-famous star athlete that she is on the tennis court and the mother and wife her family needs her to be.
“I’ve been reluctant to admit that I need to stop playing tennis. It’s like a taboo subject. It comes up and I start crying. I think the only person I’ve really been there with is my therapist,” Williams wrote.
The athlete spent more than two decades at the top of world tenniswinning his first major singles title at the 1999 US Open, then winning four Olympic gold medals and 23 Grand Slam singles titles – the most of any player in the Open Era and the second most of all time ( behind Margaret Court’s 24) – among many other accolades.
Over the years, she has fought for equal pay and diversity in the sport, helping to shape tennis as it is today and creating more opportunities for women and people of color.
“I never liked the word retirement. It doesn’t seem like a modern word to me. I thought of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive to how I use this word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Perhaps the best word to describe what I do is evolution“, she wrote. “I’m here to tell you that I’m moving away from tennis, towards other things that are important to me. A few years ago, I quietly launched Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm. Shortly after, I started a family. I want to expand this family. »
Williams married Reddit co-founder Alexis Kerry Ohanian in 2017, and the same year they welcomed their daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. In her essay, the tennis pro said her daughter constantly prayed for a little sister , and now that she’s turning 41, that part of her life is the one she wants to focus on, with his work with Nike and his venture capital firm, Serena Ventures.
Although retirement is a welcome destination or conclusion for many athletes and professionals, Williams admitted that was not the case for her.
“There is no happiness in this topic for me. I know it’s not a usual thing to say, but I feel a lot of pain. It’s the hardest thing I can imagine. I hate it,” she wrote. “I hate having to be at a crossroads. I keep telling myself, I wish it was easy for me, but it’s not. I’m torn: I don’t want this to be ends, but at the same time it’s time for me to be ready for what’s next.”
She pointed out that if she were a man, she might not have to choose between a career that has given her so much and her family, but that’s not the case.
“The fact is, nothing is a sacrifice for me when it comes to Olympia. It all makes sense,” she added. “I think tennis, in comparison, has always been a sacrifice, although it’s a sacrifice I enjoyed making.”
Williams ended her essay by saying she was still going to compete in the US Open in New York this month and was going to try to win.
“But I’m not looking for a ceremonial, final moment on the field,” she wrote. “I’m terrible at goodbyes, the worst in the world. But know that I am more grateful to you than I can ever express in words. You have carried me to so many victories and so many trophies. This will help me miss the version of me, that girl who played tennis. And I’m going to miss you.
Rosa Sanchez is the news editor at Harper’s Bazaar, where she works on entertainment, fashion and culture news. Previously, she was managing editor at ABC News and, before that, managing editor of celebrity news at American Media. She has also written articles for Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue, Forbes and The Hollywood Reporter, among others.
