Venus, Serena: Tennis Royalty Headed Into London’s Olympics

Venus Williams became a professional tennis player in 1994 at age 14. She climbed to the top 25 in the world by 1997, and since then she and her sister, Serena, have arguably been the biggest names in women’s tennis.

The two sisters collectively own 21 grand slam singles championships.  Five of Venus’s seven grand slams have come at historic Wimbledon.  Serena can also claim five Wimbledon titles, part of the 14 grand slams of her incredible career.

Now both into their 30’s, the sisters will team up once again for their country at the 2012 Olympic games in London.  With seven more grand slam titles, one could argue Serena has the career edge on her older sister, but it’s been Venus who holds the edge in Olympic play.

Venus Williams’ long list of accomplishments includes three Olympic gold medals. She and Serena teamed up to win the doubles title at the 2008 games in Beijing, China and the 2000 games in Sydney, Australia. Venus got her one-up on Serena in the Olympic medal count by also taking home the singles title at the 2000 games.

While Serena still ranks sixth in the world, at age 32 Venus has slipped to 58^th according to the Women’s Tennis Association rankings in June 2012.  However, when it comes to the Olympics anything can happen.  This will be the fourth Olympic appearance for Venus Williams, more than any other American. Her three gold medals are also the most for an Olympic tennis player.

Even if you throw out Venus’s track record, and the level of tennis Serena continues to play at age 30, these sisters have a kind of chemistry that can’t be taught. They have a bond on the court only sisters can form. Though both will compete in the singles tournament, the sisterly bond makes them a feared duo in doubles competition.

It’s not everyday a player comes along with the accolades of Venus or Serena Williams. To see sisters teaming up with these kinds of careers is an entirely different phenomenon.  As the Williams sisters’ tennis careers start to fade into the sunset, appreciate that we may never see a sisterly tandem like this again. Then enjoy, as they head to London in hopes of putting on another show for America.