Serena Williams Says Women "Have To Make Different Choices Than Men" If They Want To Raise Children
Known as one of the greatest female athletes of all time, tennis champion Serena Williams announced her retirement from the sport in order to spend more time with her family. She talked about the different choices men and women have to make when they're deciding between continuing an athletic career and having a family.
Serena Williams has won 23 Grand Slam titles in her career and her meteoric rise in tennis was especially unique because she came from Compton, CA, where there was little opportunity for teenagers to make their way in the sport of tennis. She recently announced her retirement and spoke to Time about what prompted such an important decision.
Serena Williams Says Women "Have to Make Different Choices Than Men" if They Want to Raise Children
When she originally announced her retirement, Serena wrote an essay for Vogue and lamented over the fact that she would probably still be playing tennis if she were a man. "Believe me, I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family," she said. "I don’t think it’s fair."
"If I were a guy, I wouldn’t be writing this because I’d be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the physical labor of expanding our family," she said. "Maybe I’d be more of a Tom Brady if I had that opportunity."
Serena, 40, expanded on this thought in her Time interview, sharing that her daughter Olympia wants a baby sister. “This is what I have to deal with, on a daily,” Serena said. She wishes she didn't have to choose between a family and tennis, but that's the decision she's left with.
“It comes to a point where women sometimes have to make different choices than men, if they want to raise a family,” she said. “It’s just black and white. You make a choice or you don’t.”
Serena also opened up about how difficult it has been for Olympia when she is immersed into tennis. "Olympia doesn't like when I play tennis," she admitted. "That kind of makes me sad." That's why it's "hard to completely commit" to tennis and she doesn't want to sacrifice motherhood in order to win more Grand Slams.
Whether or not it's "fair," Serena highlights one of the greatest biological differences between men and women. While fathers don't have to choose between a career and raising kids, that's not the case for women. At some point, if you're a successful athlete or businesswoman and you know you want to be fully present for your child (and plan on having more kids in the future), you'll have to make a decision and choose which one is more important to you in the long run.
Serena is playing in the US Open one last time in Flushing, NY.