Legend Bio: Serena Williams

When Serena Williams stepped away from tennis after the 2022 US Open, she did so as a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, the most wins by any woman in the Open Era. She had held the world No.1 ranking for 319 weeks, including a 186-week stretch that tied Steffi Graf’s record for the longest consecutive reign. Her 73 singles titles also took in five WTA Finals crowns and a record 23 WTA 1000 trophies, including eight at the Miami Open.

Along the way, she had inspired millions around the world and brought new fans to tennis.

After enjoying early Grand Slam success in mixed doubles, Williams captured her first singles major at the 1999 US Open, defeating Martina Hingis in the final. That triumph began a career-long dominance across all surfaces, highlighted by seven Australian Open titles (2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2017), seven Wimbledon titles (2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016), six US Open titles (1999, 2002, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014), and three Roland Garros titles (2002, 2013, 2015).

The American great completed the "Serena Slam" twice, holding all four major titles simultaneously from the 2002 French Open through the 2003 Australian Open and again from the 2014 US Open through the 2015 Wimbledon. When she claimed the singles gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics, she joined Steffi Graf as the only women to achieve the so-called Career Golden Slam.

Among many memorable moments, her 2013 season stands as one of the most dominant ever seen. Williams compiled a 78-4 record, won 11 titles including Roland Garros and the US Open, and became the first woman to surpass $12 million in single-season earnings. 

Also iconic: in 2017, Williams defeated her sister, Venus, in the final of the Australian Open whilst pregnant with her first child. Upon her return to the game, Serena reached another four Grand Slam finals as she sought to equal Margaret Court's record of 24 major titles.

Across her career, Williams formed one of the sport's most formidable doubles partnerships with Venus. Together they won 14 Grand Slam titles, completing a non-calendar-year Grand Slam from the 2009 Australian Open through 2010 Roland Garros, and captured three Olympic gold medals (2000, 2008, 2012). They spent eight weeks as co-world No.1 in doubles, while Serena was atop the singles rankings.

Having first risen to No.1 as a 20-year-old in 2002, Williams went on to become the oldest No.1 in WTA history, last holding that status when she was 35 years 230 days old in May 2017. Indeed, her statistics reflect a sustained excellence: a 858-156 singles record and a 74.5% finals win rate.

Long before she hung up her racquets, Williams had expanded her influence beyond the court through fashion, venture capital with Serena Ventures, and philanthropy, including founding two secondary schools in Kenya.

She and her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, have two daughters, Olympia and Adira.