"I was not comfortable with my body, I didn't understand why I had muscles" - When Serena Williams discussed the scrutiny she faced as a teenager
Serena Williams is considered one of the greatest athletes of the 21st century. However, the 23-time Grand Slam champion once said that as a teenager, she didn't feel comfortable with her body.
The former World No. 1 spoke to journalist Gayle King at a TED Talk in 2017 and was asked if she had faced any issues with her body growing up. She said that as a female growing up in the public eye, she was subjected to scrutiny like many others and wasn't comfortable with her body, to the point that she even stopped lifting weights.
However, once Williams won the US Open, she came to appreciate her body and said she wanted other young girls with similar experiences to be happy with their bodies as well.
"It's interesting because when you're a teenage female growing up in the public eye, it's a lot of scrutiny that you face, and as any female that's a teenager, I definitely was not comfortable with my body, I didn't like it," Serena Williams said. "I didn't understand why I had muscles and I stopped lifting weights, I was like, 'I'm not gonna do this'. But after I won US Open, I realized that my body helped me reach goals that I wanted to reach. I wanted to be happy with it and I was so appreciative of it, I am always healthy."
"I am really fortunate and super blessed and I felt like, 'Not only am I happy with my body but I want other people and other young girls who experienced what I experienced, to be happy with themselves. So whatever, people say, masculine, whatever, too much, too little, I am okay with it as long as I love myself," she added.
"The only reason I am who I am is because of my losses" - Serena Williams
During her interview with Gayle King, Serena Williams was also asked what she learned from her defeats. She said that while she hated losing, it made her who she was. The legendary tennis player added that she learned from her mistakes and encouraged others to do the same.
"I hate to lose but I think losing has brought me to here today," Williams said. "The only reason I am who I am is because of my losses and some of them are extremely painful but I wouldn't have taken any of them away because every time I lose, it takes a very long time for me to lose again because I learned so much from it."
"I encourage everyone that I talk to. I'm like, 'If you lose or if something happens, not in sports but in business or in school, learn from it. Don't live in the past, live in the present and don't make the same mistakes in future. That's something I try to live by," she added.