"Olympia told me 'You’re famous' and I’m like 'Not really, I’m just your mom'" - Serena Williams on her daughters' understanding of her achievements

Serena Williams recently opened up about her eldest daughter, Olympia Ohanian's perception of her fame and achievements. Williams married Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in 2017, and together they have two daughters - Olympia, born in September 2017, and Adira River Ohanian, born in August 2023.

Williams is widely regarded as one of the most successful tennis players in history. During her career, she won a total of 39 Grand Slam titles - 23 in singles, 14 in women's doubles, and two in mixed doubles.

The American's 23 Grand Slam women's singles titles are the most in the Open Era and the second-most of all time. She is also the only player to achieve a Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. Williams held the World No.1 ranking for 319 weeks and finished a year as the top-ranked player on five occasions.

Williams retired from tennis at the 2022 US Open, where she reached the third round before losing to Ajla Tomljanovic. Since then, she has shifted her focus to expanding her business ventures and enhancing her business portfolio

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Serena Williams was asked how her daughter Olympia perceives her fame and accomplishments.

In response, Williams shared that it was "tricky" for her to explain her achievements to her daughter. She recalled a moment when Olympia asked if she was "famous," to which the former World No.1 humbly replied that she was simply her mother.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion also expressed her intention to eventually educate both Olympia and Adira about the impact she has had on tennis and beyond.

"It’s tricky. Olympia told me the other day, 'You’re famous.' And I’m like: 'Oh, not really. I’m just your mom.' So I don’t know. I just feel like when the time comes — and, honestly, when it’s settled in for me too — I’ll definitely have that conversation with them, and I’ll let them know the potentially, the important, you know, the … I don’t want to be too presumptuous, but the impact I have had on sport and beyond," Serena Williams said.

Serena Williams reveals if she wants to push her daughters to achieve something like her father, Richard did for her

Serena Williams with Richard Williams

In the aforementioned interview, Serena Williams talked about the role her father, Richard, played in shaping her and her sister Venus Williams into top players. She credited her father for recognizing their potential and pushing them to work hard and train relentlessly.

The former World No.1 admitted that she struggled to comprehend how her father could push them to their limits, especially now as a mother to her daughters, Olympia and Adira.

The former World No.1 expressed her gratitude towards Richard for pushing her and acknowledged that without his guidance, she may not have reached the heights of success she did.

"I always look at my dad, and I think, How were you able to do that? Because I’m like, Oh, they’re so cute. I just want them to relax and I don’t want to over-push them. But I would be devastated if I wasn’t pushed, because we wouldn’t be having this interview and there would never have been a Serena Williams," Williams said.

Serena Williams confessed that she struggles to instil the same drive in her daughters despite her own experiences with being pushed to excel. However, she was hopeful that she could find a way to motivate them in the future as she knew firsthand the impact that extra push could have on one's success.

"So I feel so fortunate that I had an opportunity to have that extra oomph. But for whatever reason, I’m having a hard time connecting to that extra push, and that’s something I’ve been trying to figure out myself, how to give that extra motivation to my daughters, because it’s definitely worth it, I can confirm from experience," she added.