"So many parents get carried away with a trophy, a ranking" -When Venus & Serena Williams' father Richard revealed he put their trophies in the garage
Venus and Serena Williams' father Richard once said in an interview that he did not allow any of their trophies in his house.
Sisters Venus and Serena Williams both reached the final of the Lipton Championships (now known as the Miami Open) back in 1999. Venus Williams beat Steffi Graf while Serena triumphed over Martina Hingis.
Richard Williams was asked in an interview at the time whether the trophy would stay in their house. He responded that all the trophies his daughters won were tucked away in the garage.
"That's a good question. I wouldn't know. I don't know the answer to that one. I can tell you this much here. I do not allow no trophies in my house. I've never allowed one trophy in the house at no time. I put all the trophies out in the garage. And when they move, they can take those trophies with them," he said.
When asked the reason behind this, Richard Williams said that many parents got carried away with a trophy, a high ranking, or a lucrative sponsor.
"Because I see so many parents get carried away with a trophy and a ranking and a sponsor. We never asked for a sponsor. My wife went out and prepared to have financial aids for ourself. Before every kid in the house were born, we already had two years of income put away," he said.
Serena Williams and Venus Williams have won a combined 30 Grand Slam singles titles
Serena Williams and Venus Williams have both had incredible tennis careers and won multiple Grand Slams. They have a total of 30 Major singles titles between them.
Serena Williams won 23 of those and even completed the career Grand Slam. She won seven titles each at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, while clinching the US Open six times. The French Open is her least successful Major, having won it three times.
Venus Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles over the course of her career. Five of those have come at Wimbledon, and two at the US Open. Venus also reached the final of the Australian Open (2003, 2017) and the French Open (2002), losing to her sister on all three occasions.
The two sisters were a successful doubles pairing too, and won 14 Grand Slams together across all four Majors. They also won three Olympic doubles golds - in 2000, 2008 and 2012.