CNN interviewed Serena Williams when she was 9. Here’s what she said.
We’ve been talking about female athletes being treated like the sexiest female in a male-dominated sport for years.
Serena Williams is one of those athletes. Her fame was on the rise when she reached her peak as a teenager playing tennis at Wimbledon.
She won the French Open and the US Open in 2012 and her career seemed to be on the back burner. After she won the Australian Open, there was talk about her possibly returning to tennis. It never happened.
We asked if it was a missed opportunity for her as a celebrity. We asked if she got turned off by the whole thing.
Serena Williams is one of those athletes who are more than just a face on a tennis court. She’s an inspiration, an example for young women. She’s a role model. She’s a role model who is a lot smarter than some of us give her credit for.
And now she’s a role model who’s also a superstar, who is a brand. The way we treat women in this country, it’s sad. It’s the only country where women haven’t had the same opportunity to pursue their dreams, to have the same opportunities that have been created for men.
It’s the last thing I want to say about her. But it’s something that I think the whole conversation needs to be in a broader perspective, and I’m not in any way trying to diminish her. There are plenty of other women in our industry that are doing incredible work. She’s no different.
We need to stop viewing women athletes this way. We need to start treating them that way.
“My life is defined by the choices I make. There is no question about that.”— Serena Williams
We talked about her career and how she never let the success slip away. She didn’t make the big endorsements. She didn’t make the bigger salaries. She didn’t leave the sport and retire because her career was done.
She had this quote on a billboard somewhere and we went through the whole quote just to make sure she wasn’t trying to