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Venus Williams

, Tennis Player

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Born: 17 June 1980
Birthplace: Lynwood, California
Best Known As: Sister of Serena Williams and five-time winner of Wimbledon

Venus Williams dominated women's tennis in 2000, winning singles titles at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Sydney Olympics, and winning doubles titles at Wimbledon and Sydney with her younger sister Serena. (Her victory at Wimbledon made her the first black female champion there since Althea Gibson in 1957 and 1958.) Williams was already a famous figure in tennis for her size (6'1"), overpowering strength, and unusual tennis background: she and Serena learned to play on public courts in tough Compton, California, coached by their self-taught father Richard. After her breakthrough 2000 campaign she was named Sportswoman of the Year by Sports Illustrated magazine. In 2001 she repeated as Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion (defeating Serena in the U.S. Open finals) and she won again at Wimbledon in 2005, 2007 and 2008.

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Black Biography: Venus Williams

tennis player

Personal Information

Born Venus Ebone Starr Williams, June 17. 1980, in Los Angeles, CA; daughter of Richard (a security-business owner and daughters' coach) and Oracene (a nurse) Williams
Education: Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, attending.
Religion: Jehovah's Witness.

Career

Played junior tennis until 1991; became professional tennis player, October, 1994; won women's doubles title (with sister, Serena Williams) at the French Open, 1999; won women's doubles title (with sister, Serena Williams) and singles' title at the U.S. Open, 1999; won Wimbledon, 2000; won women's doubles title (with sister, Serena Williams) at Wimbledon, 2000; won Bank of the West Classic, 2000; won the Acura Classic, 2000; won U.S. Open, 2000; won gold medals in singles and doubles (with sister, Serena Williams) at Olympic Games, 2000; won Ericsson Open, 2001; ranked second worldwide, World Tennis Association, 2001; ranked number one by WTA, 2002; won Wimbledon, 2002; won Wimbledon and U.S. Open, 2005.

Life's Work

When Venus Williams made her debut in professional women's tennis in 1994, the New York Times's Robin Finn called her "the most unorthodox tennis prodigy her sport has ever seen." Three years later, the seventeen-year-old, six-foot-two-inch athlete was an international celebrity: photographs of Williams with the beads in her cornrowed hair clicking through the air, her face a study in determination as her racket smacked the ball to her opponent, were some of the most memorable of the 1997 tennis season. Though she enjoyed success at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, her opponents were often younger and had been playing competitive tennis longer; moreover, the blunt remarks of Williams's outspoken father sometimes overshadowed her rising star.

Williams was born in the Watts area of Los Angeles in June of 1980, the fourth of Richard and Oracene Williams's five daughters. Richard Williams was part-owner of a security business, and her mother is a nurse. A few years later the family moved from Watts to nearby Compton. All five Williams daughters played tennis as youngsters, but the two youngest, Venus and Serena, were outstanding players from an early age. Compton was infamous for its troubles with gang-related activity, and the girls practiced the game at a court in a park that gang members frequented. Williams, in fact, lost a sister, Yetunde Price, in 2003 following a dispute with local residents. Venus Williams began entering competitions, went unbeaten in 63 games, and age ten had won the Southern California girls' title in the under-12 division.

A Female Michael Jordan

Both Sports Illustrated and Tennis magazine noticed Williams's talent, and ran stories on her in the summer of 1991 calling her "tennis's newest pixie" and "a prodigy." Her father contacted Rick Macci, a tennis coach in Florida, and asked him to come to Compton to meet his daughter and judge her potential. "I hear it all the time: 'I've got the next Jennifer [Capriati],'" Macci told Tennis magazine's David Higdon. "Richard said he'd like to meet me but the only thing he could promise me was that I wouldn't get shot. All I could think of was: 'Who is this guy?'" he recalled. Early one morning Richard drove the visiting Macci to the park. "There must have been 30 guys there already playing basketball and another 20 lying on the grass passed out," Macci recollected in Tennis magazine. He played a few games with Venus, and was unimpressed. Then, he remembered, she "asks to go to the bathroom and as she walks out the gate, she walks at least 10 yards on her hands. Then she went into these backward cartwheels for another 10 yards. I'm watching this and the first thing I thought was: 'I've got a female Michael Jordan on my hands.'"

The Williams family moved to Florida when Venus enrolled in Macci's tennis academy there. She also withdrew from junior tennis that year at the age of 11. Instead of mixing practice with the competition circuit, Williams stayed put, was schooled at home, and practiced six hours a day, six times a week. She did this for four years--a decision, Macci said, that Williams and her family had made based on her unique temperament. "Putting her in a traditional development system would be like putting her in prison," the coach told Finn in the New York Times. When she was thirteen, companies were already contacting Williams and her family to offer endorsement contracts if she did turn pro.

Remarkable Debut

Tennis-watchers wondered when Williams would succumb to the lure--some young women in tennis entered professional competition at the age of fourteen, dropping out of school and playing the tournament circuit, and earning large sums of money either by winning prize purses or the signing lucrative product endorsement contracts. It was a potentially disastrous situation for many young players. Richard Williams appeared on the ABC news program Nightline in the summer of 1994 after former preteen tennis prodigy Jennifer Capriati was arrested and faced drug charges, and declared he'd never allow Venus to turn pro at such a young age. He was criticized, however for wearing a hat and vest with both bearing the logo of a sports-energy food product during the television interview.

Surprisingly Williams turned pro just a few months later. Her debut came in October of 1994 at the Bank of the West Classic in Oakland, California. There, the fourteen-year-old beat the woman ranked number 59 in the world, Shaun Stafford, then went on to give Arantxa Sanchez Vicario--women tennis's Number 2 player--a good game before losing. "She's going to be great for women's tennis," Stafford told the New York Times's Finn. Some wondered, however, why Williams had suddenly entered the professional circuit, but new rules adopted by the Women's Tennis Council of the World Tennis Association at the time may have provided just cause. After the close of 1994, fourteen-year-olds were barred from turning pro, and young women under 18 who entered the competition level from 1995 onward were limited in the number of tournaments in which they could participate.

Though she had skated into the professional level exempt from these rules, Williams restricted her schedule anyway. She stayed in school and did not appear again on the pro circuit until an August 1995 event, the Acura Classic in Manhattan Beach, California; she lost in the first round. Some tennis analysts noted that because she lacked the junior-tournament experience, Williams had not learned to inject a competitive edge to her game. Her father has tried to rectify this, sometimes by rooting against her in public matches. Conversely, he told New York Times Magazine writer Pat Jordan, "Every time she loses, I pay her $50."

As the New York Times Magazine profile pointed out, however, the dedicated fathers of women's tennis are sometimes problematic: Steffi Graf's father was charged with tax evasion, and she herself was nearly arrested for complicity; an American teenage player, Mary Pierce, had to obtain a court restraining order against her father. Richard Williams was well aware of the dangers of the sport on young women, though, and controlled his daughter's career in order to avoid problems. He saw the lesson in Capriati, who turned pro at 14. "At 15, she lost her smile," he told Jordan in the New York Times Magazine. "At 16, there were problems. What happened? I want to make sure that doesn't happen to my kids," he added.

The Williams Family In the Media

Venus's younger sister, Serena, also showed great promise as a player. Richard Williams predicted that some day the pair would have to play against one another for the women's world title, but he often received more press than either of them. "Richard Williams has been called a 'liar' and 'genius' and everything in between," wrote Higdon in Tennis magazine. The senior Williams asserted that his family did not receive any endorsement money from wearing the logo-emblazoned clothing of one sportswear maker at public appearances, but a spokesperson for the company said they had indeed paid him a consultant's fee. Yet Williams has also been lauded for shepherding his daughter's career down a non-traditional path that kept the focus on her education and allowed her to mature outside of the competitive pressures of the pro circuit. Newspaper reportage about Venus often remarks on her self-assuredness and impressive vocabulary. Her father and Macci, Finn wrote in the New York Times, "have produced a player who appears to possess wit and wisdom beyond her years--with a serve, volley, and vocabulary to match."

Again Williams stayed out of the limelight for much of 1996, and in the spring of 1997 made her debut at the French Open. A month later, as she turned seventeen, she traveled to England for Wimbledon, perhaps the sport's most famous tournament. Serena and Oracene Williams came with her to lend support, but her father stayed home. She received a great deal of attention, but had a poor showing and lost to Magdalena Grzybowska. "By the time it was over.... Williams stood revealed as a huge talent with little idea of how to adjust to an opponent or adversity," wrote S. L. Price in Sports Illustrated. She remained imperturbable, though. "It's my first Wimbledon," she told reporters. "There will be many more," she added, according to Sports Illustrated.

Her father asserted that his daughter's "only weakness is she's overconfident," he said in the New York Times Magazine. Williams's U.S. Open performance in the late summer of 1997 went somewhat better: she advanced from 66th to 25th in the rankings in one day. "Williams's progress as a player was undeniable; almost overnight she had become a force every player but one fears," wrote Price in Sports Illustrated, referring to Martina Hingis, who would take home the title. Both young women were the same age, but Hingis had far more professional competition experience. Still, insiders predicted future greatness for Williams. Pam Shriver, a former U.S. Open titleholder, once played in a training match against Serena and Venus, and she told Higdon in Tennis magazine that Venus "didn't know tactically how to play points yet, but she had weapons and has this natural way of intimidating."

Unfortunately, Williams's U.S. Open showing was clouded by charges of racism. Her father, in a telephone interview, told journalists that some of the other players had directed racial epithets toward his daughter. Gracefully, the teenager tried to deflect attention from the potential furor at a press conference, but her father's comments caused some watchers of the sport to note this may limit her chances of obtaining endorsement contracts. Other African- American players have hinted that subtle discrimination does indeed occur in what has been called a "country-club" sport, and some of Williams's white competitors on the diva-rife circuit have accused her of not smiling, or of not being friendly enough. "Why don't you guys tell me what they want me to do?" she queried reporters at one press conference, according to Sports Illustrated. "They should come up to me and say, 'Venus, I want you to smile so I can feel better.'"

While the hints of racism continued to plague Williams, she nevertheless proved to be a fearless opponent. Over the next few years, Williams improved her game, lost weight and the hair beads--she'd been fined when they spilled on the court. Soon she won Wimbledon, becoming the first African-American female since Althea Gibson to do so. Both sisters also won the doubles' becoming the first set of sisters to do so. When the two faced off in the Wimbledon singles' semifinals, it had been over 100 years since a sibling showdown. In the same year, Williams also won two Olympic gold medals in singles and doubles with her sister, Serena, as her partner. She continued the success of her first Grand Slam by winning the U.S. Open in 2000.

Won Both Wimbledon and U.S. Open--Again

After a stellar 2000 season, Williams needed to prove to the tennis world that she was going to continue to win championships. The first step on that road was to defend her Wimbledon title. Which she did to the amazement of most. Next in line was to defend her U.S. Open title. She battled it out through the semi-finals, until she met her opponent for the final--her sister, Serena. Both sisters made precedent yet again by being the first set of sisters to play against each other in U.S. Open history. Venus defeated Serena, winning her second back-to-back grand slam tournament game.

Williams would come out on top in December of 2001 when Reebok re-signed her to a $40 million contract that was believed to be the most lucrative and comprehensive endorsement deal ever created for a female athlete. Of Williams, Reebok said in Footwear News, "Venus Williams is arguably the most admired female athlete and among the most recognizable and exciting young women in the world,"

Williams has also won numerous honors and awards, including: being named Ms. Women of the Year (along with Serena), by Ms. Magazine in 2001. She was also named Female Player of the Year by Tennis Magazine. She expanded outside of tennis by designing a clothing line for clothing company Wilsons The Leather Experts. She has inked deals with not only Reebok, but also Wrigley gum, makeup giant Avon, and Nortel Networks. Many have criticized Williams for not being focused on tennis, including tennis legend, Martina Navritolova, who was quoted in Time as saying her outside interests shows "arrogance and lack of commitment to tennis." Even one family member feels Williams should choose between tennis or the distractions. Her father told the Florida Times Union, "If it was up to me, I told Venus two or three years ago that she should retire. I think she should."

Finally, in March of 2002, Williams reached the ultimate goal, earning the number one ranking from the Women's Tennis Association. In an interview with Jet she said, "I'm very excited about this achievement and look forward to building on it. I have worked hard for it. I hope I can keep it. But my priority is the Grand Slams." Despite the excitement of being a former tennis prodigy and the number one female player of the sport, Williams remained a rather ordinary, though somewhat extraordinary, intelligent and athletic young woman. Williams supports many social causes and speaks to many children on the value of an education. She participates in tennis clinics for would-be tennis players. Regarding the game of tennis, however, she does concede some recognition of her own ability. "I never thought anyone was better than me," she told Finn in the New York Times when she was still ranked No. 211. "Once you do that, you lose," she added.

Venus Williams, who missed the 2003 U.S. Open because of an injured stomach muscle, won two tournaments in 2004; her furthest penetration into a Grand Slam event that year was the French Open, where she reached the quarterfinals.

In 2005, Williams and her sister Serena starred in a six-episode reality show on ABC Family. They also published a book, Serving from the Hip: 10 Rules for Living, Loving and Winning, with Houghton Mifflin. Serena Williams told Yanick Rice Lamb in Black Issues Book Review that the book "talks about a lot of stuff--every issue that preteens and teens might have to deal with. We consider ourselves role models, and we wanted to do something positive for kids." Venus Williams added, "It was something that we had to do to pass on our knowledge, what we've gone through." In the book, the sisters tell how they won so many tournaments, how they handled being injured, and how they dealt with the inevitable competitions against each other. The book also includes chapters such as "Why school is cool" and "Don't Rush a Crush."

That summer, Williams, who had slipped to the No. 16 spot in world rankings, perhaps because of the distractions of the book and television show, was knocked out of the French Open in the third round by 52nd-ranked Bulgarian player Sesil Karatantcheva. However, Williams fought hard and came back to win a third Wimbledon championship later in the summer. Her opponent, No. 1-ranked Lindsay Davenport, told S. L. Price in Sports Illustrated, "She just took it away from me. She just was...incredible." Williams said of her win, "I was just thinking, I've got to stay tougher. I've got to stay tougher than whoever's across the net.". Later in the season, Williams defeated her sister, Serena, in the fourth round at the U.S. Open in New York; it evened their record in head-to-head matches at seven victories apiece.

Williams, who is a voracious reader, continues to study fashion part-time, working towards her associate degree from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale. She told Lamb, "My happiest moment will be when I graduate. I'm almost there."

**Venus Williams**

Country	United States
Residence	Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, U.S.
Date of birth	June 17 1980 (1980--) (age 27)
Place of birth	Lynwood, California
Height	m ()
Weight	72 kg (158 lb)
Turned Pro	1994
Plays	Right; Two-handed backhand
Career Prize Money	$18,096,031
Singles
Career record:	468-108
Career titles:	36
Highest ranking:	No. 1 (February 25, 2002)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open	F (2003)
French Open	F (2002)
Wimbledon	W (2000, 2001, 2005, 2007)
U.S. Open	W (2000, 2001)
Doubles
Career record:	90-17
Career titles:	10
Highest ranking:	No. 5 (October 11, 1999)
Infobox last updated on: July 7, 2007.

Olympic medal record
Women's Tennis
Gold	2000 Sydney	Singles
Gold	2000 Sydney	Doubles

Playing style

Venus is an offensive baseliner on most surfaces. When playing on grass however, she becomes more of an all-around player and will often take advantage of any opportunity to put away a volley at the net. She possesses some of the most powerful strokes ever to grace a tennis court. Her stand-out shots are her first serve and her backhand.

Venus Williams possesses the most powerful and feared first serve on the women's tour. She is capable of serving at speeds in excess of 125 mph, which is as fast as many of the male players, however her second serve has been known to be a liability. She tends to hold back on the second serve which compromises her technique. Her second serve speed varies greatly, from 80 to 102 mph.

Her two handed backhand is very consistent and powerful and rarely breaks down under pressure. Venus also hits a powerful forehand, which is particularly deadly down-the-line, although it has been criticised in the past for breaking down under pressure.

Venus is one of the best volleyers on the women's tennis tour, able to hit deft touch volleys as well as thunderous swing volleys. Williams 6'1" frame and lanky figure give her a tremendous wing span. This enables her to stretch for volley's that most players would be unable to reach. That and her athleticism also makes her extremely difficult to lob at the net.

Not to be underestimated is her defense, as she is able to run down balls many players would not get near to.

She is very mentally strong in her matches and always keeps good composure.

Early career

Already well-known at age 14, Williams turned professional on October 31, 1994. In the second round of her first professional tournament in Oakland, Williams was up a set and a service break against top seed Arantxa Sanchez Vicario before losing the match. That was the only tournament Williams played in 1994. She remained a part time player on the tour during the next two years, playing only three tournaments in 1995 and five tournaments in 1996.

Williams began to play regularly on the tour in 1997. The highlight of her year was her debut at the U.S. Open, where she lost in the final to Martina Hingis 6-0, 6-4 after defeating Irina Spirlea in a semifinal famous for "the bump" in which Spirlea and Williams collided during a changeover. Richard Williams later claimed that this incident was racially motivated.^[2]

In 1998, Williams teamed with Justin Gimelstob to win the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open and the French Open. Her sister Serena Williams won the other two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles of the year, completing a "Williams Family Mixed Doubles Grand Slam." At the Australian Open that year, the Williams sisters boasted that they could beat a man ranked past 200 in the world. As it happened, German Karsten Braasch (then ranked 203) was in attendance and took them up on the offer. He beat Serena and Venus back to back by the score of 6-1 and 6-2. Braasch noted that the morning of the "matches", he had played a round of golf and consumed several beers.^[3] Afterwards the sisters revised their statement and stated they could beat men ranked past 350 in the world. Humorously, due to the expiring nature of ATP points, Braasch was slated to lose a significant number of points in the following few weeks and would drop below 350. In singles, Venus won the Grand Slam Cup and the tournaments in Miami and Oklahoma City. She also reached at least the quarterfinals at all four Grand Slam tournaments. She ended the year ranked fifth in the world.

In 1999, Williams won the tournament in Miami, defeating Jana Novotna, Steffi Graf, and her sister Serena in successive matches. Venus also won the tournaments in Hamburg, Rome, New Haven, and Zurich. Venus and Serena teamed to win the doubles titles at the French Open and the U.S. Open, becoming the first sister team to win a Grand Slam doubles title in the 20th century. Venus also went 2-1 in the United States 4-1 win in the final of the Fed Cup against Russia giving the U.S. its 16th title. 1-1 in singles 1-0 in doubles (with Serena)

In 2000, Williams won the singles title at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and two gold medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.^[4] She became only the second player to win the women's singles and doubles title at the same Games.^[5] The Williams sisters also won the Wimbledon doubles title for the first time.

Williams defended her Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles titles in 2001. At the U.S. Open, Williams won the tournament without dropping a set, defeating sister Serena in the final 6-2, 6-4. The Williams sisters won the Australian Open doubles title for the first time, completing a career Grand Slam in doubles for the pair. Venus won six singles titles during the year.

Williams opened 2002 by defeating Justine Henin to win the Gold Coast tournament. She then reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, won Paris and Antwerp, and reached the semifinals of Dubai and Miami. Williams won seven singles titles during the year, a career best. In February 2002, Williams became the top-ranked player in the world, the first African American player to garner that spot since the computer rankings began in 1975.^[6] The Williams sisters won the Wimbledon doubles title for the second time in 2002.

Beginning with the 2002 French Open and extending through the Australian Open in 2003, Venus reached the final in four consecutive Grand Slam singles tournaments, losing each to Serena.

2003

Williams started the year by losing to her sister Serena in three sets in the 2003 Australian Open final.

Williams then won the Proximus Diamond Games in Antwerp, Belgium for the second consecutive year, defeating Daniela Hantuchova and Kim Clijsters in consecutive matches.

During a semifinal match against Clijsters at Wimbledon, Williams suffered a severe abdominal injury that required medical attention during the match. Williams lost the first set and was behind early in the second set before rain delayed the match. Once play resumed, Williams won the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-1, advancing to her fourth consecutive Wimbledon final. Venus lost the final to her sister Serena 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.

Venus's older half sister, Yetunde Price, was murdered in the Compton, California area on the morning of September 14, 2003.^[7] The era of domination by the Williams sisters began to close out after the murder. Following Wimbledon, both Venus and Serena suffered injuries that kept them out of competition for the last half of the year.

2004

Williams came back to the tour and experienced inconsistent results. As the third seeded player because of a protected ranking, she reached the third round of the Australian Open, where she lost to Lisa Raymond. After quarterfinal losses in Tokyo, Dubai, and Miami, Williams won the Tier I Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina, defeating Conchita Martinez in the final. At the Tier II tournament in Warsaw, Williams defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final. The following week, Williams reached the final of the Tier I tournament in Berlin but was forced to retire from her match against Amelie Mauresmo. Going into the French Open, Williams had the best clay court record among the women and was among the favorites to win the title; however, she lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Anastasia Myskina 6-3, 6-4.

At Wimbledon, Williams lost a controversial second round match to Croatian Karolina Sprem. The umpire of the match, Ted Watts, awarded Sprem an unearned point in the second set tiebreak. Upon the conclusion of the match, he was quickly relieved of his duties.^[8]

Williams was the third seed at the hardcourt tournament in Stanford, where she lost the final to top seeded Lindsay Davenport in a third set tiebreak. At the tournament in Los Angeles the following week, Williams lost again to Davenport, this time in the semifinals. Williams was leading 5-1 in the first set when she suffered an injury and lost the last six games of the set. She then retired from the match.

In the fourth round of the U.S. Open, Williams lost to Davenport for the third consecutive time. Williams ended her year by losing in the quarterfinals of three consecutive tournaments in Moscow, Zurich, and Philadelphia.

2005

Williams started the year by losing in the fourth round of the Australian Open to Alicia Molik. She then reached the final at the Proximus Diamond Games in Antwerp, Belgium, where she was attempting to win the tournament for the third time in four years. She defeated Kim Clijsters in the quarterfinals, Anastasia Myskina in the semifinals, and was up a set and a break in the final against Amelie Mauresmo before losing the match. Williams then lost in the first round in Dubai.

At the NASDAQ-100 Open in Miami, Venus defeated her sister Serena in the quarterfinals before losing to Maria Sharapova. This was the first time since the 2001 U.S. Open that Venus had defeated Serena.

Williams then reached the quarterfinals at Amelia Island, where she lost to top seeded Lindsay Davenport. In her next tournament in Charleston, Williams lost in the third round. She then won a Tier III title in Istanbul, defeating second seeded Nicole Vaidišová in the final.

At the French Open, Williams lost in the third round to 15-year old Bulgarian Sesil Karatantcheva, who subsequently failed a doping test and was suspended from the tour for two years.

At Wimbledon, Williams defeated defending champion Sharapova in a semifinal 7-6(2), 6-1, breaking Sharapova's serve four times. (Sharapova had lost only one service game to that point.) This marked the sixth consecutive year that at least one of the Williams sisters had reached the final, and it was Venus's fifth appearance in the Wimbledon final in the past 6 years. In the longest Wimbledon final in history, Williams was down match point at 6-4, 6-7(4), 5-4 (40-30) before coming back to defeat top seeded Davenport. This was Williams's third Wimbledon singles title, and this was the first time in 70 years that a player had won after being down match point during the women's final. In addition, Williams, as the 14th seed, was the lowest seed to win the women's singles title in Wimbledon history.

Playing for the fifth consecutive week, including Fed Cup, Williams reached the final of the Stanford tournament after defeating Patty Schnyder in a semifinal 2-6, 7-6, 6-2. Visibly exhausted, Williams lost the final to Clijsters.

At the 2005 U.S. Open, Williams reached the quarterfinals. In the fourth round, Venus defeated her sister Serena for the second consecutive time. In the quarterfinals, Williams lost to Clijsters 4-6, 7-5, 6-1, who went on to win the tournament.

In 2005, TENNIS Magazine put her in 25th place in its list of 40 Greatest Players of the TENNIS era.^[9]

2006

Williams lost surprisingly in the first round of the Australian Open to Tszvetana Pironkova 2-6, 6-0, 9-7. It was Williams' earliest loss at that tournament.

Williams was out of action from January 16 until April 30 because of injuries. After defeating Martina Hingis in the second round, she reached the quarterfinals at the J&S Cup in Warsaw, losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova. She then lost to Hingis in a semifinal of the Italian Open, after defeating Jelena Janković and Patty Schnyder in earlier rounds. Williams ended her clay court season with a French Open quarterfinal loss to Nicole Vaidišová 6-7, 6-1, 6-3.

Williams competed at Wimbledon as one of the favorites to win the title. She survived a scare against fellow American Lisa Raymond in the second round when Williams was two points from defeat. Williams then lost in the third round to 26th seeded Janković 7-6(8), 4-6, 6-4. After the loss, Venus was quoted as saying that she was having pain in her left wrist, but that it was not the reason why she lost.

Williams did not play in the U.S. Open series or the U.S. Open itself due to a recurring wrist injury. During her first tournament in almost three months, she reinjured her wrist in Luxembourg and lost in the second round after defeating rising star Ana Ivanović in the first round.

2007

Williams started the year by withdrawing from the 2007 Australian Open because of a recurring wrist injury. This was the second consecutive Grand Slam event that Williams has missed due to injury.

At the WTA Cellular South Cup in Memphis, Tennessee, Williams won the title, defeating top-seeded Shahar Peer of Israel in the final 6-1, 6-1. This was her first tournament since October 2006 and her 34th career singles title.

Williams's next tournament was the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, where she lost in the third round to top seeded Maria Sharapova 2-6, 6-2, 7-5. However, her ranking jumped from number 39 to number 32.

She then moved onto clay, playing at the Tier II Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida. She beat Aravane Rezai and fourth seeded Patty Schnyder before falling in the quarterfinals to the eighth seeded eventual champion Tatiana Golovin 6-2, 6-3. Her next tournament was the Tier 1 Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina, where she lost in the semifinals to Jelena Janković. Despite the loss, her ranking rose to World No. 22.

Williams played Fed Cup with her sister Serena for the first time in four years, in a home tie against Belgium in Delray Beach, Florida beating the young Belgium team 5-0. Williams defeated Kirsten Flipkens 7-5, 6-2 and Yanina Wickmayer 6-1, 6-2.

At the J&S Cup in Warsaw, Poland, a title she won in 2004, Williams lost in the quarterfinals to Svetlana Kuznetsova 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

After taking two weeks off after her loss to Svetlana Kuznetsova in Warsaw, Williams arrived in Istanbul in preparation for the French Open at the Istanbul Cup. She started out well, defeating Tatiana Poutchek 6-1, 6-2 in the first round. However, her run ended as she lost to French hard hitter Aravane Rezai 6-4, 6-4 in the second round.^[10] This was Williams's first ever defeat in a Tier III event on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour.

At the French Open, Williams lost her third round match with Janković 6-4, 4-6, 6-1. During her second round win over Ashley Harkleroad, Williams hit a 206 km/h (128.8 mph) serve, which is the fastest woman's serve ever recorded.

At the Wimbledon Championships, playing with a white Wilson (K) Factor limited-edition racket featuring 22-carat gold leaf laid into the frame, a resurgent Williams won her first six singles matches, reaching the final for the sixth time. In her third round match against Akiko Morigami, Williams won the first set 6-2 but then trailed 4-1 in the second set when rain interrupted play. After it resumed, Morigami won the set 6-3 and served for the third set before Williams regrouped and won the match 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. In the fourth round match against Maria Sharapova, the second seed going into the tournament, Venus won in straight sets 6-1, 6-3 and reached the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, on July 5, Venus played Svetlana Kuznetsova, the number 5 seed, whom she beat in straight sets 6-3 6-4, to reach her 6th Wimbledon Championship semifinal. She then beat sixth seed Ana Ivanović 6-2 6-4 to reach the final, defying her critics. This Wimbledon run has drawn comparisons with her 2005 win. On July 7, 2007, Venus clinched her 4th Wimbledon Title with a decisive 124 mph serve into the body of her opponent, Marion Bartoli, who could not return it. Venus won the match in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1, taking £700,000 home in prize money. Seeded no. 23, Williams beat her own record set in 2005 as the lowest women's seed to win Wimbledon. During the ceremony she said that her sister Serena inspired her to win.^[11] With her 4th Wimbledon title, Venus joins the elite group comprising Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf as the women who have won four or more Wimbledon ladies singles titles in the Open Era.^[12] The win also catapulted Venus' WTA Ranking from #31 to #17, her first return to the top 20 in a year.

She then played for America in the Fed Cup for their semifinal tie against Russia. Despite Venus winning both her singles matches, beating Nadia Petrova and Anna Chakvetadze, the American team lost in the deciding doubles tie where Venus paired up with Lisa Raymond.^[13]

Williams' next tournament was San Diego. In the first round, she defeated Anastassia Rodionova 6-3, 6-0 despite having a low percentage of first serves in. She faced Virginie Razzano in her second round match and won 6-2, 6-4. Williams struggled a bit in the second set, serving six double faults and only getting 49% of her first serve in. Venus played a much better match against Daniela Hantuchova, the sixth seed in the tournament. She defeated Hantuchova in straight sets, 6-0, 6-3 serving 5 aces in the process and breaking her 7 times. For her quarter-final match, Williams lost to Anna Chakvetadze of Russia. Venus held match point in the second set but lost her nerve, double faulting and ended up giving the match to her opponent. Williams served 8 double faults and managed to only get 43% of her first serves in play in the third set. The final score was 6-7, 7-6, 6-2. However, as a result of her quarterfinal appearance, she moved up two spots to take the #14 spot in the world rankings. She was scheduled to play the Rogers Cup in Toronto but withdrew due to injury.^[14]

At the U.S. Open, Venus defeated all of her early-round opponents in straight sets. In a quarterfinal match that culminated in a dramatic third-set tiebreak, Venus prevailed over Jelena Janković 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). Williams was defeated by Justine Henin in the semifinals of the 2007 US Open 7-6, 6-4 both players played high quality tennis but both had some health issues during the match. Henin came off court first during the match for some treatment yet in the second set Venus was complaining of a stomach ache and dizzyness and was given minimal treatment for it. In the post match interview Venus stated "I just was feeling dizzy, a little sick to the stomach. Was just having some energy problems. I'm not really sure what's wrong with me" adding "But, you know, credit to her for playing well." Later, Oracene Price, the Williams' sisters mother talked about how Venus had been diagnosed with anaemia in San Diego where she lost in the quarter finals, revealing that “Today I guess the anaemia came back,” continuing “Venus feels like the ground is moving beneath her feet. Things aren’t right and we have to find out what’s wrong.”^[15]^[16].

After reaching the semifinals, her ranking moved up five places to No. 9. With Serena at No. 7, it was the first time the sisters were in the top 10 together since September 2005.

Venus competed in and won her 36th career singles title at the Hansol Korea Open Tennis Championships in Seoul, South Korea. Williams, as the top seed, defeated fourth-seeded Russian Maria Kirilenko in the Championship match 6-3, 1-6, 6-4. Despite having a heavily strapped leg, Williams then played in the AIG Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, Japan where she coasted through her first two rounds against compatriots Jill Craybas and Vania King 6-1, 6-3 and 6-0, 6-4 respectively. She then defeated Alicia Molik 7-6(4), 6-3 in the quarterfinals, hitting 15 aces in the process, and Danish teenager Caroline Wozniacki 6-3, 7-5 in the semi-finals. However, Venus lost to Virginie Razzano in the final 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-4 after holding three match points. Venus recieved medical treatment for a hip problem after the second set. Venus is scheduled to play in the PTT Bangkok Open next week, she defeated Caroline Wozniacki in the first round 6-2 6-2 and in the second round defeated Tamarine Tanasugarn 6-4 6-1, she will now meet Camille Pin in the quarterfinals. After posting a stellar win against Camille Pin is the Quaterfinals at the PTT Bangkok Open 6-1 6-1, Williams is into the semi-finals were she will meet the number 7 seed Flavia Pennetta after she overcame worlds number 16 Shahar Peer in three sets. In the semi-finals Flavia Pennetta upset Venus Williams 6-4, 7-6 (8)

Fight for equal prize money for women at Wimbledon and the French Open

Despite decades of lobbying by tennis pioneer Billie Jean King and others, only the French Open and Wimbledon in 2005 still refused to pay women's and men's players equally through all rounds. In 2005, Williams met with officials from both tournaments, arguing that female tennis players should be paid as much as males.^[17] Although WTA tour President Larry Scott commented that she left "a very meaningful impression," Williams's demands were rejected.

The turning point was an essay published in the The Times on the eve of Wimbledon in 2006. In it, Williams accused Wimbledon of being on the "wrong side of history," writing:

I feel so strongly that Wimbledon’s stance devalues the principle of meritocracy and diminishes the years of hard work that women on the tour have put into becoming professional tennis players.

I believe that athletes — especially female athletes in the world’s leading sport for women — should serve as role models. The message I like to convey to women and girls across the globe is that there is no glass ceiling. My fear is that Wimbledon is loudly and clearly sending the opposite message....

Wimbledon has argued that women’s tennis is worth less for a variety of reasons; it says, for example, that because men play a best of five sets game they work harder for their prize money.

This argument just doesn’t make sense; first of all, women players would be happy to play five sets matches in grand slam tournaments....

Secondly, tennis is unique in the world of professional sports. No other sport has men and women competing for a grand slam championship on the same stage, at the same time. So in the eyes of the general public the men’s and women’s games have the same value.

Third, ... we enjoy huge and equal celebrity and are paid for the value we deliver to broadcasters and spectators, not the amount of time we spend on the stage. And, for the record, the ladies’ final at Wimbledon in 2005 lasted 45 minutes longer than the men’s....

Wimbledon has justified treating women as second class because we do more for the tournament. The argument goes that the top women — who are more likely also to play doubles matches than their male peers — earn more than the top men if you count singles, doubles and mixed doubles prize money. So the more we support the tournament, the more unequally we should be treated! But doubles and mixed doubles are separate events from the singles competition. Is Wimbledon suggesting that, if the top women withdrew from the doubles events, that then we would deserve equal prize money in singles? And how then does the All England Club explain why the pot of women’s doubles prize money is nearly £130,000 smaller than the men’s doubles prize money?

I intend to keep doing everything I can until Billie Jean's original dream of equality is made real. It’s a shame that the name of the greatest tournament in tennis, an event that should be a positive symbol for the sport, is tarnished.^[18]

In response, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and members of Parliament publicly endorsed Williams's arguments.^[19] Later that year, the Women's Tennis Association and UNESCO teamed for a campaign to promote gender equality in sports, asking Williams to lead the campaign.^[20] Under enormous pressure, Wimbledon announced in February 2007 that it would award equal prize money to all competitors in all rounds, and the French Open followed suit a day later.^[21] In the aftermath, French Tennis Federation president Christian Bimes admitted he had been "particularly sensitive" to Williams's remarks,^[22], and the Chicago Sun-Times cited Williams as "the single factor" that "changed the minds of the boys" and a leader whose "willingness to take a public stand separates her not only from most of her female peers, but also from our most celebrated male athletes."^[23] Williams herself commented, "Somewhere in the world a little girl is dreaming of holding a giant trophy in her hands and being viewed as an equal to boys who have similar dreams."^[24]

Venus herself ultimately became the first woman to benefit from the equalization of prize money at Wimbledon, winning the 2007 tournament and being awarded the same amount as the male winner.

Off court

Her boyfriend, pro golfer Hank Kuehne, has been a visible presence since Wimbledon, holding her hand during the long delays and clapping support from the players' box along with Williams' parents and younger sister, Serena.

"He's a great guy," Williams said. "He understands competition. He's very supportive. I love having him here and everyone else in the box, too."^[25]

Venus is a businesswoman and CEO of her interior design firm "V Starr Interiors" located in Jupiter, Florida. Williams' company garnered prominence by designing the set of the "Tavis Smiley Show" on PBS, designed the Olympic athletes apartments as a part of the U.S. bid package for New York to host the 2012 games, and designed for residences and businesses in the Palm Beach, Florida area. Most recently Venus Williams has teamed up with retailer Steve & Barry's to launch her own fashion line EleVen to be in stores from November with over 120 pieces.

"I love fashion and the idea that I am using my design education to actually create clothing and footwear that I will wear on and off the tennis court is a dream come true for me," Williams said, "the vision has been to create a collection that will allow women to enjoy an active lifestyle while remaining fashionable at the same time. I'm thrilled with everything we've created to launch EleVen." ^[26]

In 2001, Williams was named one of the 30 most powerful women in America by Ladies Home Journal.^[27] .

Career statistics

Grand Slam finals

Singles

Wins (6)

Year	Championship	Opponent in Final	Score in Final
2000	Wimbledon	Lindsay Davenport	6-3, 7-6(3)
2000	U.S. Open	Lindsay Davenport	6-4, 7-5
2001	Wimbledon (2nd)	Justine Henin	6-1, 3-6, 6-0
2001	U.S. Open (2nd)	Serena Williams	6-2, 6-4
2005	Wimbledon (3rd)	Lindsay Davenport	4-6, 7-6(4), 9-7
2007	Wimbledon (4th)	Marion Bartoli	6-4, 6-1

Runner-ups (6)

Year	Championship	Opponent in Final	Score in Final
1997	U.S. Open	Martina Hingis	6-0, 6-4
2002	French Open	Serena Williams	7-5, 6-3
2002	Wimbledon	Serena Williams	7-6(4), 6-3
2002	U.S. Open (2nd)	Serena Williams	6-4, 6-3
2003	Australian Open	Serena Williams	7-6(4), 3-6, 6-4
2003	Wimbledon (2nd)	Serena Williams	4-6, 6-4, 6-2

Doubles

Wins (6)

Year	Championship	Partnering	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
1999	French Open	Serena Williams	Martina Hingis Anna Kournikova	6-3, 6-7, 8-6
1999	U.S. Open	Serena Williams	Chanda Rubin Sandrine Testud	4-6, 6-1, 6-4
2000	Wimbledon	Serena Williams	Julie Halard Ai Sugiyama	6-3, 6-2
2001	Australian Open	Serena Williams	Lindsay Davenport Corina Morariu	6-3, 4-6, 6-4
2002	Wimbledon (2nd)	Serena Williams	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez	6-2, 7-5
2003	Australian Open (2nd)	Serena Williams	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez	4-6, 6-4, 6-3

Mixed Doubles

Wins (2)

Year	Championship	Partnering	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
1998	Australian Open	Justin Gimelstob	Cyril Suk Helena Suková	6-2, 6-1
1998	French Open	Justin Gimelstob	Luis Lobo Serena Williams	6-4, 6-4

Runner-up (1)

Year	Championship	Partnering	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
2006	Wimbledon	Bob Bryan	Andy Ram Vera Zvonareva	6-3, 6-2

Titles (47)

Singles (36)

Legend
Grand Slam (6)
Grand Slam Cup (1)
WTA Championships (0)
Tier I (6)
Tier II (16)
Tier III (5)
Tier IV (1)
Olympic (1)

Titles by Surface
Hard (22)
Clay (7)
Grass (4)
Carpet (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent in Final	Score in Final
1.	February 23, 1998	Oklahoma City, U.S.	Hard	Joannette Kruger	6-3, 6-2
2.	March 16, 1998	Key Biscayne, USA	Hard	Anna Kourniko