WIMBLEDON

July 8, 2000

Venus Williams

MODERATOR: Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen. Venus Williams.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I feel really calm. I love winning Wimbledon. I love playing tennis. I love winning titles. And I realised, you know, I wouldn't be any happier in my life in general if I won or lost. Sure, in tennis, the tennis part of my life, I'd be much happier. But winning, losing, money, riches or fame doesn't make you happy. So for my tennis career, this is great. But as far as being Venus, it doesn't really make a huge difference.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, I was just pretty happy at that point because I had let a lot of opportunities go in that second set. Finally I pulled the tiebreak out without a huge, huge struggle against myself. I was pretty happy.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I didn't say anything. If I did, I don't remember. It was great because we have two singles Slams in our family, four mixed doubles, and two doubles. We're racking them up now.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't know. I always expected to win Grand Slams. This is just good for me. This is good for my career. That's all I feel.

VENUS WILLIAMS: This was meant to be. I didn't serve and volley it out, but the first four matches I was serving and volleying. So that counts for something. Maybe next year I'll get through seven serving and volleying.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Because I worked real hard all my life. I had a lot of sacrifices, I had a lot of injuries, and I had a lot of tough loses, too. But I didn't let that get to me. I kept working hard and I kept believing, even at some points when I didn't have a reason to because I played so badly sometimes.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Definitely not.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Oh, yeah. In our family, it's positive. We don't just work to be professional. We're happy to be on the circuit. We worked hard to be the best because for us, why play if we don't believe we can be the best? Okay, maybe, sure, one day maybe we didn't turn out to be the best, but if we worked toward and believed it, that's all that counts.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Maybe the first time that Wimbledon meant a lot to me was when Zina was doing so well in 1990 when she beat maybe Monica in the quarterfinals. Am I correct? And she beat Steffi in the semis. I was only ten. But, you know, that meant a lot to us. We would be out there practising on the courts in the afternoon. This is the summer, so we're out of school. This guy who walked his dog came by. My dad, he's friends with everybody, talked to everyone. Talked to this guy, "What's the score out there?" The guy would tell us the score. "What happened?" "Zina won the first set." I remember we were out there practising when Zina won against Monica, against Steffi. I don't remember, I think we got to see the final. I don't know if it was on tape or if we saw it live.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Those are my notes just in case I forget something like to stay low or something technical, just in case I forget. "Oh, that's not what I'm doing." It's only a few things.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Keep my mind focused or to stay relaxed.

VENUS WILLIAMS: It took so long for me to get better. It was just really strange because I missed the Australian Open, I thought that would be the only tournament I missed. Before I knew it, I was missing Oklahoma, one of my favourite tournaments. Then I missed the next week in Scottsdale, then the Lipton. So it was starting to get pretty unbelievable. "Where is this going to?" It was really strange, it took so long. I couldn't do anything because I had to use my hands, but I couldn't use them.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, that's from my ballet classes when I was a kid.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, I knew she was watching when Serena won the US Open. She said that she was happy that she got to see another black person win it in her lifetime. So now I think it's really a privilege for me to win this Wimbledon while she's still alive.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No, no. Only talked to her once on the phone. I didn't know what to say. She said, "Why are you so quiet?"

VENUS WILLIAMS: No. I guess he just made it up.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, it had to be hard because people were unable to see past colour. Still these days, it's hardly any different because you have to realise it's only been 40 years. How can you change years and centuries of being biased in 40 years? So realistically, not too much has changed. But I really appreciate how hard it was. You realise not everyone wants you to win, not everyone's going to support you - and that's okay.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, we're really aware of that. We know the black people are really top supporters. When you go to Germany, the Germans support the Germans. We really relate to each other, of course. We're black. We fought for everything we have.

VENUS WILLIAMS: People are turning their TV and suddenly they see this black girl playing tennis. "What is this?" We're out there grunting and speeding.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, because we're doing something different that hasn't been done very often.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Sure, I think a lot of people will look and see. But also you have to get out there and help out, let people see you start programs. That would definitely be something that I and especially my dad could help to start. Because, sure, things can happen, but you've got to put your hands on the ball and get it moving.

VENUS WILLIAMS: The tennis academy in LA.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yes, I guess maybe if you haven't won yet, you can let it ruin your life. After Serena won the US Open, you can see that she's the same person. You realise that winning isn't everything. After you win, you go home. If things aren't right at home , you have bad health, whatever problems you might have, it doesn't make a difference whether you won or lost.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I didn't really think I was going to lose serve. I had two double-faults, a few unforced errors. In the end, I think just my technique broke down. But I just wasn't going to let it hold me back today. I tried my best.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I just don't think I was calm. I wanted to hit the ball before it could even get over the net, which sometimes isn't good, because you rush.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No, I wasn't looking up until the end, then I saw something. My eyes aren't that good in the distance, so I couldn't really read it.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No, because I was thinking about that moment exactly, pulling out that set. If something strange happened, it had to go to the third set, then that's what would have had to happen. But, no, not really. I was concentrating on winning that tiebreaker and holding serve.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, Lindsay really has improved her movement and her fitness. They're starting to become a plus for her. But definitely I was going to try and move her around. But most of all I was going to play my game, hit my big serves, especially since my second serve has improved drastically in the last two matches. I knew I was playing two power players. I was playing Serena. I was going to play Lindsay. I started hitting these 90 mile-an-hour second serves.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I really think we were both just feeling pressure. For me, I know I was rushing too much. I wanted to go get it before it came. That doesn't work.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I didn't want to be picked up.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah. My height, if I fall, it's going to be a problem.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I was bitter because of my French Open result. I felt I didn't deserve to spend any money. I had one dress I could wear, but it was last year's, it wasn't the right colour. Colours have changed since then. So I had to go find a dress. We had only limited time because we were doing a lot of therapy, we were working out twice a day. I was scrambling around the mall finding a dress. It was an extra incentive because if I didn't win, I wouldn't get to wear this wonderful dress. I went out and I found the dress. There were beads falling off of it, so they had to go call another store, find another dress the same, then repair the dress. So I went through a lot to get this.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I bought my dress in Florida.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I'm not going to say.

VENUS WILLIAMS: There was only eight days I stayed home from the French to Wimbledon. So I got it the day before . No, I picked it up the day we left.

VENUS WILLIAMS: She got one. She was a little more generous.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, in a lot of matches, a lot of my tough matches, especially last year starting at the French Open, for some reason I started losing these matches when I would get in the third set. Usually before I would be able to pull those out, no problem. But at the French Open, I lost a tough match, and then last year at Wimbledon I lost this tough match, and at the US Open I lost a tough match. So it was starting to become a trend. So for me it was a lot more pulling out the big matches, no matter what I had to do, just go for it. I think most of all prove to myself that I can do this again.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Sure. Why not? In this Wimbledon, I played my game. I never took anything off my serve. No matter if I double-faulted or not, I went ahead and hit my big serve. On my groundstrokes, I didn't start waiting for someone to miss; I just went for it, whether I missed it or not. I played my game, no matter what the consequences. Today I didn't move forward too much because I just didn't want to come to the net. But still I feel I played my game because in the past there probably would have been a lot of times where I would have started taking pace off my serve to get the first one in. You know, what counts is I went for it.

VENUS WILLIAMS: She said, "Great job. " She was really, really getting emotional there, trying to hold it in.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, my mom gave me a choker, but I didn't wear it in the last two matches because I forgot to wear it.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Someone gave it to me.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Everybody has their own opinion.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No. I told you I didn't see it. I was mostly looking at my notes.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, I definitely think so. I got here in the Grand Slam, I beat No. 1, I beat No. 2, and I took out No. 8, which was not easy. I think maybe I was most concentrating on that because I knew she was like the best player in the draw. She was playing the cleanest.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, I don't remember. You mean literally or just daydreaming?

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, I dreamed of winning Wimbledon, sure.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Every Slam. It doesn't matter.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Proud.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Because I got the job done. I didn't let anything hold me back - not No. 1, not No. 2, not No. 8.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No. It was a clean shirt.

VENUS WILLIAMS: It's pretty cool, you know. It's a great name. I like to say so.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't understand.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't know. I have to talk to Serena, see how she felt. Being in the Olympics is great. We'd have the opportunity to win two golds, or I would at least. But if Serena wasn't happy, I don't think I would go. But I really want to.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Everyone seems to think so.

VENUS WILLIAMS: When I bought my dress.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Before I came, because I had to make myself a promise, so I bought the dress.

VENUS WILLIAMS: You'll have to wait and see.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I think the British crowd is very fair, unless of course you're playing against someone from Britain.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I didn't hear too much, but in general I think they're very fair as far as rooting for the person that's down or rooting equally for each person.