"I never said, 'This happened to me because I'm Black'" - When Serena Williams shot down accusations that she used racism claims to divert criticism

Tennis icon Serena Williams once denied the accusations of her using racism as a shield to deflect criticism.

The accusations were aimed at Williams by 18-time Grand Slam champion Martina Navratilova in 2001. Navratilova told Time Magazine that people were "afraid" to criticise the Williams sisters because of the fear of being labeled as "racist."

"I think they’ve been treated with kid gloves. People have been afraid to criticize them because they don’t want to be called racist. They have made excuses and not given any credit to their opponents. They’re afraid to show any kind of humility," Navratilova said.

Serena Williams subsequently responded to such claims made by another legend of the sport during a press conference at that year's US Open.

While acknowledging that she had experienced racism in the past, the American denied playing the racism card and dismissed Navratilova's comments as fabricated.

"You can go back and read all my transcripts. I personally never said in an article or interview that, 'This happened to me because I'm Black'," Williams said.

"I have gone to a store and been treated differently because I was Black once. Other than that, no. I mean, you can go back and read all my transcripts. Maybe that was a bit on the fabrication side," she added.

Serena Williams advanced to the final at Flushing Meadows in 2001, where she was defeated by her sister Venus. On her way to the championship match, the younger Williams sister secured victories over Anca Barna, Denisa Chladkova, Martina Sucha, Justine Henin, Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis.

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Serena Williams refuted claims of her getting more endorsement deals because of being Black

Serena and Venus Williams pictured with their trophies at the 2001 US Open

In the same press conference, Serena Williams was asked whether she believed the difficulty African-American players faced in obtaining endorsement deals had improved over time.

The 23-time Major champion replied:

"I think in a sport that is a predominantly white sport, I think when athletes -- when people see new faces, like for instance golf with Tiger Woods, maybe if hockey were to have a superstar that was maybe Spanish or maybe black, I think then maybe it would get a few more people to watch a sport."

Williams then clarified that her success in securing such deals was not attributed to her race but rather to her hard work and accomplishments on the court.

"But as for being black and getting more endorsements because I'm black, I wouldn't know anything about that. All I know is I get endorsements because I win and I work hard," she said.

"I go out there and have a good attitude and I smile. I like tennis. Whether I got endorsements or not, I don't know. All I know is that that's what I can say about it," she added.