With seven Wimbledon singles titles, Serena Williams stepped away from tennis after the 2022 US Open. However, she has now returned at 44 as a wildcard for her first singles match on June 30, 2026.
The American tennis legend got married to Alexis Ohanian on November 16th, 2017. Ohanian has consistently been in the stands, rooting for Williams.
Who is Alexis Ohanian?
Ohanian. born on April 24, 1983, is an Internet entrepreneur and investor. He is the cofounder and former executive chairman of Reddit. He also co-founded the early stage venture capital firm Initialized Capital. He currently lives in Florida with his wife and children.
Williams recalled in her Vanity Fair cover story from June 2017 how she first crossed paths with Ohanian. They met by chance over breakfast at the Cavalieri Hotel in Rome.
Williams was eating with friends when Ohanian, a stranger to their group, settled at the adjacent table. “This big guy comes and he just plops down at the table next to us, and I’m like, ‘Huh! All these tables and he’s sitting here?’” she described.
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In a bid to get him to move, the others warned him that there was a rat at his seat. When Ohanian stayed put, Williams invited him to join her table, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Later, to her surprise, Ohanian flew to Paris for the weekend just to watch her play. The pair spent six hours together on the day of her first match, walking around the city, talking, and falling in love.
Before meeting Willaims, Ohanian wasn’t a tennis fan. Yet their relationship appeared to become public knowledge when he shared an Instagram post from the 2015 U.S. Open. In the caption, he wrote, “Come at the queen, you best not miss,” accompanying a photo of the court.
The grand proposal
Ohanian took Williams back to the spot where their story started – the Cavalieri Hotel – for the proposal. He arranged an intimate table for two, decorated the pool area with roses, and popped the question.
Just after a month, Serena found out that she was going to be a mother. On September 1, 2017, the couple welcomed their daughter Alexis Olympia.
Two months after welcoming their daughter, Williams and Ohanian exchanged vows in New Orleans. Willaims made her entrance in a ballgown by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen the same designer Kate Middleton wore for her 2011 wedding.
Early 2023 brought another pregnancy reveal from the couple, delivered in a show-stopping fashion at the Met Gala. On the red carpet of the glamorous fundraiser, Willaims told Vogue’s livestream, “There’s three of us here,” signaling the arrival of their baby.
