American tennis player Serena Williams, who will receive the 2025 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports tomorrow for her extraordinary record and commitment to equality, declared herself an “unconditional fan” of Carlos Alcaraz.
“When he plays, I call him and say: ‘How nice, I was cheering you on!”, said the athlete about the 22-year-old from Murcia, a “very young” tennis player who has records ahead of him to try to surpass.
In fact, Williams felt that Alcaraz, a six-time Grand Slam winner, could go on to equal or surpass the records of Novak Djokovic (24), Rafa Nadal (22) and Roger Federer (20), as records are “there to be broken”.
Considered one of the best in history thanks to an extraordinary record that includes 73 individual titles, including 23 Grand Slam and four Olympic gold medals, the player, who retired in 2022, made these statements at a press conference, a day before receiving the award from Princess Leonor in the ceremony that the King and Queen of Spain will preside over at the Campoamor Theater in Oviedo.
“I know a lot about Spanish tennis,” said Williams, who stressed that many athletes from this country have been at the top of the sport for “many years.”
“I have always cared a lot about the legacy I left behind,” said the athlete, who was also praised by the jury for her role as a staunch advocate for gender equality.
He does not value Trump’s presidency
Blessed with great physical and mental strength and impeccable technique, Williams, who has broken several records in women’s tennis throughout her career, avoided responding to the political situation in the United States under Donald Trump’s presidency: “I skip it (the question). I’m just thankful to be alive. I don’t get involved in politics.”
For Serena, who stepped away from competition when she became pregnant, although she returned to the courts in 2018 and before retiring achieved one more title, in Auckland in 2021, tennis “is more accessible today.”
Committed to defending equal opportunities in education and helping victims of violence, to whom she devotes resources through her foundation, the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports winner said that she has come to Spain many times, loves the culture of the country, enjoys visiting the museums in Madrid and showing her daughters the different traditions.
“I am very excited and it is a real honor to receive” an award whose granting “surprised me very much”, makes me feel “fulfilled” and before which I am “at a loss for words”.
Dancing to the sound of bagpipes
She added that she finds it “impressive” to be the winner of this “international recognition”, which she learned about after actress Meryl Streep won it in the Arts category in 2023.
“All these months I thought: Am I the winner?” said the American, who moments before the press conference was cheered by the crowd gathered at the entrance of the Hotel de la Reconquista, where she danced to the sound of bagpipes during a photo shoot for the press.
On her first visit to Asturias, where she arrived yesterday, Williams was able to take a walk around Oviedo and enjoy a “very nice” dinner, said the tennis player, who this afternoon will star in a meeting with the public, in an event with capacity for 2,000 people under the title ‘Serena, legacy and legend’, which will be moderated by Olympic champion Theresa Zabell and former professional tennis player and director of the Mutua Madrid Open, Feliciano Lopez, both members of the jury of the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports.
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