Serena Williams fondly revisits golden memory of Patrick Mouratoglou watching her dance
Serena Williams fondly revisited a joyful dance memory with her former coaches, Patrick Mouratoglou and Mackie Shilstone. Back in the day, Shilstone served as Williams' fitness coach, while Mouratoglou was her head coach.
Shilstone recently shared a humorous throwback video featuring a lighthearted moment where he danced alongside Serena Williams. Williams joined the career extension specialist while performing stretching exercises with a resistance band. Shilstone cleverly turned the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s exercises into dance moves, all while Mouratoglou watched with a smile.
"It's the holidays let's dance," he wrote.
Watch the video shared by Shilstone on Instagram:
Williams re-shared the video on her Instagram stories and revealed that despite their comedic appearance, their playful dance moves were intended as serious exercises.
"To think this was us being serious, @patrickmouratoglou, @mackieshilstone," she wrote.
After turning pro in 1995, Serena Williams built an illustrious career, during which, she won 23 Grand Slam titles. Mouratoglou played a pivotal role during a transformative decade (2012–2022), helping her secure 11 Grand Slam titles, an Olympic gold medal, and three consecutive WTA Finals championships.
Whereas, Shilstone is widely regarded as one of the most influential fitness experts, having collaborated with prominent athletes such as MLB star Brian Dozier, legendary boxers Roy Jones Jr., Michael Spinks, and Bernard Hopkins, as well as two-time Super Bowl winner Peyton Manning.
Mackie Shilstone revealed how Serena Williams "made him laugh" and introduced him to social media
In a conversation with BBC Sport nearly two years ago, Shilstone reflected on his coaching experiences with Serena Williams, amusingly recalling how the 43-year-old introduced him to texting and social media.
"She [Serena Williams] taught me how to have fun, she made me laugh. I've got two sons, one's 34, one's 30. The first person that taught me to text was Serena!" She said, 'I dont do phone.' I said, I don't do phone, where do you come from, woman? I don't do text. She said, 'You've got to text with me'! She said, 'Mackie, you need to be on Twitter.' I said, I don't need to be on Twitter. She hooks me up for Twitter. She said, ’I want to put you on Instagram.' I said you do? Whats Instagram? and she says, 'Oh Mackie," he said.
Williams and Shilstone began their partnership in 2008, during which the former World No. 1 secured 14 Grand Slam titles, bringing her career total to an impressive 23.