Serena Williams has issued a heartfelt apology for her outburst at the 2018 United States Open Tennis Championships.
The tennis superstar suffered a meltdown during the final game of the tournament last September when she lost her cool and verbally attacked chair umpire Carlos Ramos after he accused her of cheating and receiving signals from her coach in the stands.
The pair’s war of words disrupted Serena’s final set against Naomi Osaka for 15 minutes, as she raged at the umpire and called out the sexism in the sport, and he deducted a point and then a game from the tennis star.
In an emotional letter published in the August issue of Harper’s Bazaar magazine, 37-year-old Williams laments what should have been an “amazing and historic” match.
“Not only was a game taken from me but a defining, triumphant moment was taken from another player,” she writes. “I couldn’t find peace. I started seeing a therapist. I was searching for answers.”
The seven-time Wimbledon champion admits she didn’t return to the court until she wrote to Osaka that she was “truly sorry” — but insists she “thought I was doing the right thing in sticking up for myself.”
Following the incident, Williams was fined $17,000, but admitted to Osaka she believed the response to the incident was largely sexist.
“I had no idea the media would pit us against each other,” she continues. “I would love the chance to live that moment over again. I am, was, and will always be happy for you and supportive of you.”
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