Why the Williams sisters and other stars are playing longer
Key takeaways
- More than three decades after they burst onto the tennis scene, Venus and Serena Williams are still playing at the top level.
- Now in their forties, both are back playing at the top level, after Serena (44) joined 46-year-old Venus in appearances at the Queens tournament in London and the Berlin Open over the last week.
- The pair have also been offered a wilcard doubles entry for Wimbledon a decade after they won the last of their six doubles titles at that particular Grand Slam.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
More than three decades after they burst onto the tennis scene, Venus and Serena Williams are still playing at the top level. Why are we seeing elite athletes carrying on into their 40s and beyond?
https://p.dw.com/p/56Xsq Serena and Venus Williams will return to doubles action at Wimbledon a decade after their last title win Image: Gerry Penny/dpa/picture alliance Advertisement It's difficult to overstate the impact of the Williams sisters on tennis. Now in their forties, both are back playing at the top level, after Serena (44) joined 46-year-old Venus in appearances at the Queens tournament in London and the Berlin Open over the last week.
The pair have also been offered a wilcard doubles entry for Wimbledon a decade after they won the last of their six doubles titles at that particular Grand Slam. They have also won two US Open doubles titles, two in the French Open and four in the Australian Open. Between them they also have 30 Grand Slam singles titles, Serena has 23 of those. But her motivation for this comeback after four years out came a little closer to home.