Oracene Price, the mother of Venus and Serena Williams, doesn’t have much to complain about. While most mothers, above all else, simply want to see their children successful, Price is fortunate enough to have not one, but two daughters who have dominated the tennis world for the last 15 years.
The Williams sisters can attribute their success to a rare blend of talent, athleticism and work ethic, but they certainly wouldn’t be where they are today without the support and upbringing of the 63-year-old Price. As Serena aims for her 21st career major with a box of A-list celebrities supporting her at Wimbledon, let’s take a look at one of the most important figures in her life.
1. She Was a Coach From the Beginning: Price and ex-husband Richard Williams began coaching daughters Venus and Serena when they were only toddlers. “It’s almost like they were raised on the court,” said Price, who learned how to play when she was pregnant with Venus. “They still weren’t as athletic as me, but I did notice one thing: they had a natural swing. That’s what I looked for first.”
While Serena now works with Patrick Mouratoglu, she admits that her mother is still “one of the best at helping to break down my game.”
2. She & Richard Williams Divorced in 2002: Price, who married Williams in 1980, was bapitized as a Jehovah’s Witness just four years later. Williams, however, never converted, and that slowly created a divide between the two. The New York Times‘ John Jeremiah Sullivan explained the situation:
As much power as he possessed in the family, there remained a kind of inner circle — of women and faith — of which he remained outside, which may go some way toward explaining how the girls can both revere him and roll their eyes at him. He’s their father, but he’s other.
In 1999, Williams was suspected of breaking three of Price’s ribs. He was never charged, as Williams claimed she broke them on a door handle, but the marriage was clearly falling apart. Three years later, they were divorced.
Richard, 73, married Lakeisha Graham, who is one year older than Venus, in 2010. Together, the couple has a son, Dylan, who was born in 2012.
3. Her 1st Husband Passed Away: Prior to her marriage with Williams, Price was wed to Yusef Rasheed, who died in 1979. Before his death, the couple had three daughters, Yetunde, Lyndrea and Isha.
Serena Williams buys her mother 4-bedroom mansion worth $3m
Former world number one tennis player Venus Williams is giving away a generous gift to mother Oracene Price – a 2804 square feet house in Jupiter, Florida. According to TMZ, Venus signed the house over to her mother in September, who is liable to pay just $10 to maintain legal transaction.
Williams bought this house (the Florida mansion contains four bedrooms and three bathrooms) in 2000 for $310,000, whose possession will now be taken by her mother Oracene Price. Venus is projected to retire from tennis sooner than later with age being the major factor while the house in today value is estimated at over $3m.
Venus Williams: ‘I’m Desperate To Settle Down and Have Kids’
Just call her Miss Independent. Tennis star Venus Williams is Cosmopolitan magazine’s October covergirl — and in an accompanying interview with the magazine, she got real about relationships.
While reflecting on another year of life — the interview took place a few days ago — Venus explained her love of freedom, and why she doesn’t feel pressure to settle down with a romantic partner or start a family.
“I have a lot of friends who don’t believe me when I say that I like my life and I don’t want to change it for any reason. I’m not desperate and they don’t believe me,” she said about being single — a status she confirmed in a comical interview at Wimbledon in late June. “They say things like, ‘You’re going to miss your window.’ I’m like, ‘Please, relax. You might feel this way, but I don’t. I don’t want marriage.
Venus Williams Asks Bachelors to Send Dating Applications, Shows Interests in Dating
Venus shared a post on Instagram and a Tweet talking about her dating life. The tennis legend has kept her humor up in these times. She talked about how she has the free time to go explore her dating life. The athlete had earlier stated that she was ‘un-dateable’ but she seems to have had a change of heart.
7 Grand slam title winner jokingly listed the qualities required in the guy who applies to take her for a date.
Venus said “now that I have free time, I am accepting applications from all bachelors above 5 feet tall, smart but not smarter than me, has a job and doesn’t talk too much.” She also sarcastically mentioned that her coach Eric Chechtman will be taking the applications for her.
The Former World No. 1 Venus Williams says she is currently single, although that is not by choice, and that she is desperate to settle down and have kids.
In a Q&A session with fans on Friday on Twitter, the tennis legend, said opened up about her personal life and ‘I am single but not by choice; and I’m desperate to settle down and have kids’
Venus has been single for a while. She separated from her boyfriend Nicholas Hammond after dating him for two years. They were last spotted together in the marriage of Venus’ sister Serena Williams to Alexis Ohanian. Will we soon get to see the results of the online applications?
