SERENA WILLIAMS

BACKROUND INFORMATION

• She was born on Sept. 26 1981, in Saginaw, MI, USA
• She is the youngest of 5 daughters, their family moved to Los Angeles, CA when she was young
• Their parents always wanted their daughters to play tennis Serena and her sister Venus showed promise in that at an early age
• They were coached my their father, Serena entered her first tournament at age 4 and a half, she excelled in the highly competitive preteen circuit in Southern California, attending a number-one ranking.
• In 1991 they started being coached by pro Rick Macci, they moved to Florida, which is now their current residence

HER TENNIS CAREER

• When she was 14 in 1995 she turned pro
• She won 4 gold medals in the Olympics playing for the US 3 in doubles 1 in singles
• She won 22 grand slam singles in the 4 Opens
• She plays doubles with her sister Venus Williams
• Since June 2012, Patrick Mouratoglou has been her coach

IMPACT ON SOCIETY

• She is the 2nd African American woman to win a Grand slam title, the first was Althea Gibson
• Serena and her sister have already created a legacy for inspiring African American children to play tennis
• Tennis students taking lessons from Serena and Venus say that the two sisters have inspired them

FUN FACTS

• Serena recently announced her engagement with Alexis Ohanian, her fiancé
• Her parents are now divorced
• Her oldest sister was murdered in 2003 in Los Angles
• Clothing stores like Nike have a special line of clothing for Serena to wear to express her unique style

THANK YOU