This is AH-Mazing!
This year marks the first time that Sports Illustrated has
made a shift in their awards for athletes of the year.
In the past, the famous sports magazine had awards for
“Sportsman” or “Sportswoman of the year” but this year
they’ve made a shift to change their award to “Sports person
of the Year.”
And the winner of the prestigious first-time title is none other
than tennis superstar Serena Williams !
Williams has had a sensational year! She won three major
titles, remained Number 1 in her sport, won her 21st Grand
Slam single title — only one shy of Steffi Graf‘s Open-era
record — and overcame plenty of personal hurdles.
Sports Illustrated Group editor Paul Fichtenbaum said of the
decision:
“She was the most deserving person for the award. She had
an amazing year. The way she won her events; the fact that
she’s done this for so many years at such a high level. She
was a terrific candidate in a year of terrific candidates.”
Serena talked a bit about the challenges she’s faced this
year — which included injuries like bone bruises and an elbow
strain, as well as playing at the French Open with a
temperature of 101. Williams recalled:
“I was crying so hard. I didn’t want to win. I just wanted to
go home. I said, ‘I can’t play anymore.'”
FYI she did go on to win!
But that wasn’t the only adversity the 35-year-old faced as
she also talked about how she’s grown up and matured over
the years.
During the Australian Open final, the chair umpire made a
call that Williams didn’t agree with.
Just a few years ago, Serena famously threatened a line
judge for a foot-fault call and was fined $82,500.
This time
around though, the tennis star kept her cool. She explained:
“I just kind of laughed. A few years ago I wouldn’t have been
able to laugh. I haven’t lost that part of me; I’m very
passionate on the court, but I’ve learned to be fierce more on
the inside.
It was a Grand Slam final. I said, ‘Serena, just
laugh. You’ve been here before.’ I learned from that
experience.”
Her biggest challenge this year though came when she
decided to return to Indian Wells — the site of a tournament
where in 2001 she had previously been booed for scratching
before the semi-final against her sister, Venus Williams .
The crowd was not happy, and the girls and their father,
Richard , were allegedly racially abused by ticket holders as
they left.
After the 2001 experience, Serena vowed to never return to
Indian Wells, but this year she decided it was time to move
on and put her past behind her and give it another shot.
Though she had to withdraw once again this year due to a
knee injury, Williams explained:
“Everyone always asked, ‘What was your greatest moment in
tennis?’ and I always said it hasn’t happened. But I think it
has happened now, and that was going back to Indian Wells
and playing.
It released a lot of feelings that I didn’t even
know I had. I was really surprised at how emotional I got—
and how relieved I felt after everything was said and done.”
But the brunette beauty isn’t just a sensation on the court;
she uses her star power to help bring attention to social
issues in the world.
In October, she guest-edited for Wired magazine and had an
essay published which urged Silicon Valley to hire more
women and minorities. She wrote:
“To those of you involved in equality movements like Black
Lives Matter. I say this: Keep it up. Don’t let those trolls stop
you.”
On her activism, she said:
“I’ve been a little more vocal, but I want to do more. I want
to help everyone to see the so-called light. But there are a
lot of other athletes, actors, politicians who are speaking out
—of all colors, by the way.
They’re not sitting back. They’re
calling for justice straight away. It makes me look at myself
and say, like, What am I doing? I have a platform. I can speak
out, too. If one person hears me, maybe that person can
speak out and help. I embrace that. I’m willing and happy to
be part of this new movement.”
As for those dating rumors, the athlete explained:
“I hear I’m with someone new every week. I’m really happy
right now.”
This is so incredibly inspirational and we couldn’t be happier
about SI ‘s pick this year!
Do you think there was another athlete that should have
received the award?
No comments:
Post a Comment