Last updated: 2026
Serena Williams is an American tennis player who won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the most of any woman in the Open Era. She spent 319 weeks as world No. 1 and is widely ranked among the greatest athletes in any sport. After stepping away in 2022, she surprised fans in June 2026 by returning to the court at the age of 44. This Serena Williams life story covers her childhood, her career, her business work, her family and the latest news from her comeback. It also separates confirmed facts from estimates, especially on net worth.
Serena Williams at a Glance
Here is a quick summary of the main facts. Figures are current as of October 2026.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Serena Jameka Williams |
| Born | 26 September 1981, Saginaw, Michigan |
| Age | 45 |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Turned professional | October 1995 |
| Grand Slam singles titles | 23 (Australian Open 7, Wimbledon 7, US Open 6, French Open 3) |
| Grand Slam doubles titles | 14, all with Venus Williams |
| Olympic gold medals | 4 (singles 2012; doubles 2000, 2008, 2012) |
| Weeks at world No. 1 | 319 |
| Career prize money | About $94.8 million |
| Spouse | Alexis Ohanian |
| Children | Two daughters |
Early Life: From Compton to Florida
Serena was born in Saginaw, Michigan, the youngest of five daughters of Oracene Price. Her father, Richard Williams, moved the family to Compton, California, where he believed the tough neighborhood would prepare his daughters for a tennis career. Serena started playing at age four, and her father taught her and her sister Venus at home. When she was nine, the family moved to West Palm Beach, Florida, so the girls could train at Rick Macci’s academy.
By 1991 she had a 46–3 record on the junior circuit. Her father later stopped sending the sisters to national junior events because he wanted them to focus on school and avoid burnout. In 1995 he also took over their coaching from Macci, and Serena turned professional in October of that year, just after turning 14. Her half-sister Yetunde Price, who died in 2003, remained a major part of her story, and Serena dedicated her 2007 Australian Open title to her.
Serena Williams Career: The Rise to No. 1
Her early results were mixed. She won her first professional singles title in Paris in February 1999, and that September she won the US Open by beating Martina Hingis, which made her the second African American woman to win a Grand Slam singles title after Althea Gibson. In July 2002 she beat Venus in the Wimbledon final and rose to world No. 1 for the first time.
Between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open, she won four major titles in a row, and each time she beat Venus in the final. The press called this the “Serena Slam”. After a knee surgery and some difficult seasons, including a six-month break in 2006 that she later linked to depression, she came back and won the 2007 Australian Open as an unseeded player. She and Venus also won doubles titles together, including Olympic gold in 2000 and 2008, and they never lost a Grand Slam doubles final.
The Dominant Years, 2012 to 2017
Serena faced serious health scares in 2010 and 2011, including a pulmonary embolism, but she returned stronger. In 2012 she won Wimbledon, the Olympic singles gold medal and the US Open, which completed her career Golden Slam in singles. She then won all four majors in a row between the 2014 US Open and the 2015 Wimbledon, her second “Serena Slam”. Her chance at a calendar-year Grand Slam ended in a shock semifinal loss to Roberta Vinci at the 2015 US Open.
At the 2017 Australian Open she beat Venus in the final to win her 23rd major, passing Steffi Graf’s Open Era record. She revealed in April 2017 that she was about 20 weeks pregnant, which meant she had won that title while pregnant. Her daughter Olympia was born on 1 September 2017, and Serena then suffered a pulmonary embolism after the birth, which kept her in bed for six weeks.
Motherhood, Comebacks and Retirement
Serena returned to tour in 2018 and reached four more major finals across 2018 and 2019, at Wimbledon and the US Open each year. She lost all four, so her 24th title never came. The 2018 US Open final against Naomi Osaka was controversial, because Serena received three code violations and a game penalty, and she said she was treated unfairly because she is a woman. She lost the match, and the umpire’s decisions were debated around the world.
In August 2022 she wrote in Vogue that she would “evolve away” from tennis. Her last singles match was a loss to Ajla Tomljanović at the 2022 US Open, after a second-round win over world No. 2 Anett Kontaveit. She finished with a singles record of 858 wins and 156 losses and 73 titles.
Latest Updates: The 2026 Comeback
On 1 June 2026, Serena announced that she would return to professional tennis, starting in doubles. She played with Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko at the Queen’s Club event and won her first match, but the pair went out when Mboko withdrew with a knee injury. She then lost in the first round in Berlin with Karolina Muchova. On 21 June she received a wildcard into the Wimbledon singles draw, her first Grand Slam singles entry since 2022.
At Wimbledon on 1 July, she lost in three sets to Maya Joint of Australia, even after saving a match point in the second set. She then hurt her knee, which forced her to withdraw from the planned doubles match with Venus. In August the sisters lost a first-round match at Cincinnati in a match tiebreak. At the US Open she reached the mixed doubles quarterfinals with Carlos Alcaraz, and on 4 September she and Venus lost a thrilling first-round doubles match to Chan Hao-ching and Joint in a deciding tiebreak.
She did not play US Open singles because of the knee, and on 31 August she said she would “probably” play singles again. She also said this would not be a permanent return, and no further schedule has been confirmed. I did not find a confirmed date for her next tournament, so any report of one should be treated carefully.
Records, Awards and Legacy
Experts often call Serena the greatest female player ever, and the Tennis Channel ranked her first in 2020. Her serve is widely seen as the best in women’s tennis history. She is also the only player, male or female, to complete three career Golden Slams, one in singles and two in doubles.
Her honours include four Laureus Sportswoman of the Year awards, the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Decade for the 2010s, and the 2025 Princess of Asturias Award for Sport. In 2024 the International Sports Press Association voted her the best female athlete of the past 100 years. She and Venus are also widely credited with bringing more diversity to tennis.
Business Ventures and Net Worth
Off the court, Serena runs Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm that reportedly raised a $111 million first fund and invests in early-stage companies, with a focus on diverse founders. She signed a five-year, $40 million deal with Nike in 2004, and Nike named its largest building on its Portland campus after her. She also served as Chief Sporting Officer at Aston Martin and joined the board of SurveyMonkey in 2018.
Forbes reportedly estimated her net worth at around $400 million in June 2026, which would make her the richest woman who built her fortune mainly as an athlete. This is an estimate as of 2026 and not a confirmed figure, because her finances are private. Other websites show much lower numbers, from about $210 million to $250 million, but many of those pages look outdated or unreliable, so I treat them with caution.
Personal Life
Serena married Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit, in 2017. They have two daughters, Olympia, born in 2017, and Adira River, born in 2023. Serena has said her daughter Olympia encouraged her to play with Venus again, and she has said she wants her daughters to see her compete.
How This Was Researched
I researched this profile using Wikipedia, major news coverage from ESPN, CBS News and Olympics.com, tennis and sports biographies, and business and net worth reports. I cross-checked the main career records across at least two sources and noted where they differed, such as the exact tiebreak score in her 2026 US Open doubles loss, which I left out. Many pages that rank for her name are repeated, low-quality articles with older or conflicting net worth numbers. So I focused on a clear timeline, her 2026 comeback and honest labels for estimates. I have no personal contact with Serena Williams and nothing here comes from private sources.
Accuracy Note
This biography is based on publicly available information, including news coverage and sports records. Her 2026 plans can change quickly, and net worth figures are estimates. If you spot anything outdated or incorrect, please let us know so we can update it.
Written and researched by Usama Khan, contributor at lopin magazine.
FAQ
Who is Serena Williams?
Serena Williams is an American tennis player who won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, 14 Grand Slam doubles titles with her sister Venus and four Olympic gold medals.
How old is Serena Williams?
She was born on 26 September 1981, so she is 45 years old as of October 2026.
How many Grand Slam titles did Serena Williams win?
She won 23 in singles, the most in the Open Era. Only Margaret Court has more in the history of the sport.
Is Serena Williams still playing tennis in 2026?
She returned in June 2026 after retiring in 2022. She has played doubles and one Wimbledon singles match, and she said she would “probably” play singles again, but no new schedule is confirmed.
What is Serena Williams’s net worth?
Forbes reportedly estimated about $400 million as of June 2026. This is an estimate, and other sites give different numbers.
Who is Serena Williams married to?
She is married to Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit. They have two daughters, Olympia and Adira River.
How many weeks was Serena Williams world No. 1?
She held the top singles ranking for 319 weeks, the third-most of all time.
Usama Khan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Lopin Magazine, where he oversees the site’s biography and news coverage with a focus on accuracy and well-researched storytelling.
