When talking about the greatest talents in tennis, two names will always come up in the conversation – Serena Williams and Venus Williams.
The sisters have an astonishing 30 Grand Slam titles between them, and they often paired up to dominate in doubles tournaments as well.
Serena may be more successful on the tennis court, but Venus burst onto the scene first, ushering in a new era of tennis.
Her story can sometimes be overshadowed by Serena’s, so GiveMeSport Women shines a light on the life of the seven-time Grand Slam winner.
The early life of Venus Williams
Venus’s early life has now been made famous in the recent film “King Richard”. The award-winning biopic tells how the Williams sisters were introduced to tennis on the public courts in Los Angeles and were quickly identified as special talents.
The family moved from Compton in California to West Palm Beach in Florida in 1990 so the sisters could train with tennis coach Rick Macci.
Richard Williams, the father of Serena and Venus, had a unique approach with his daughters.
He stopped sending his daughters to junior tennis tournaments when Venus was 11-years-old, allowing them to focus on the schoolwork and protecting them from racial abuse.
In 1995, Richard decided to take his daughters out of Macci's academy, and coach them at home.
WTA Tour breakthrough
By this point, Venus was already playing on the WTA Tour. She turned professional in 1994, at the age of 14.
Her real breakthrough came in 1997, when she reached the final of the US Open.
Although she ended up losing to Martina Hingis, Venus became the first woman since 1978 to reach a US Open final on her first attempt, and was the first unseeded US Open women's finalist since 1958.
Venus also broke into the top 50 for the first time, ending the year ranked world number 22.
The following year, the young star won her first WTA title – the IGA Tennis Classic – and finished the year ranked 5th in the world.
Williams sisters begin their dominance
Serena had now joined her older sister on the WTA Tour, and the pair’s dominance of tennis began to kick in.
Venus first tasted Grand Slam success in 2000, winning both Wimbledon and the US Open. She would go on to defend both of these titles in 2001, also triumphing three more times at Wimbledon during her illustrious career.
It was during this period that Venus emerged victorious in the singles tournament at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, before earning another gold medal with Serena in the doubles.
The pair would go on to win again at Beijing 2008 and London 2012. In fact, Venus and Serena often played in doubles tournaments together, winning 13 Grand Slam titles in total.
Venus first moved up into the world number one spot in February 2002, becoming the first black woman to do so in the Open Era, and the second of all-time after Althea Gibson.
She would spend 11 weeks at the top of the world rankings in total during her career.
Latter end of career
In 2011 Venus was diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease that left her easily fatigued and sore. She adapted after the diagnosis, switching to a vegan diet and altering her training schedule to allow for more recovery days.
Venus experienced a resurgence after learning to live with the autoimmune disease, re-entering the world top five in 2017 after reaching the Australian Open and Wimbledon final.
But her form soon began to dip, and by 2019, Venus was out of the world’s top 50. Last year she dropped out the top 100, her lowest ranking since 2011.
While Venus has not officially retired, she has not appeared on the WTA Tour for nearly a year, last playing at the Chicago Open in August.
The 41-year-old has pursued business ventures outside of tennis, and is now the chief executive officer of her interior design firm V Starr Interiors. She also has her own clothing line and a book entitled: “Come to Win; On How Sports Can Help You Top Your Profession”
Venus’s time as a professional tennis player may be coming to an end, but she has built up a legacy which will last forever.