GettyThe absolute Queen of tennis, Serena Williams, has truly made her name as the GOAT.
Last year she won Wimbledon while pregnant, and this year, she put on an incredible performance, making it to the final just 10 months after suffering serious complications during child birth.
Williams, who brought daughter Olympia into the world with husband and Reddit co-founder, Alexis Ohanian, was defeated yesterday, (July 14), by Germany’s Angelique Kerber.
Here’s her emotional post-match interview:
With her voice breaking after the match, an emotional Williams said:
It’s been an amazing tournament for me, I was really happy to get this far.
It’s obviously disappointing but I can’t be disappointed, I have so much to look forward to and I’m literally just getting started.
To all the moms out there, I was playing for you today and I tried but Angelique played really well. I look forward to continuing to being back out here and doing what I do best.
The couple introduced their new daughter on Instagram, with Serena explaining they were finally leaving hospital after almost a week-long stay, due to complications.
Ohanian consoled Williams after her loss but also took the opportunity to speak about his desire for the bar to be raised regarding fatherhood.
He expressed how fathers are commended for simply having a child, and any extra help is seen as something other than normal.
Ohanian wrote in The Hill:
For these early months of my daughter’s life, I knew I needed to be present with my family.
Being able to be present with my family was a privilege that unfortunately many parents in this country are not afforded.
When Serena went back to work after Olympia was born, I worked with one of our portfolio companies at Initialized capital, AdQuick, to put up four billboards celebrating her reentry to the world of tennis.
Every new parent deserves a giant billboard shouting to the world how awesome they are, but most moms don’t even get a paid day off.
The US stands alone among industrialised nations in not requiring maternity leave for new moms. As a result, 1 in 4 mothers return to work within two weeks of giving birth. That’s not good for our country, our kids, or our health.
Ohanian continued to talk about how this is so prevalent to fathers as well as mothers:
This isn’t just for mothers, though. I look forward to the day when feeding my child in public isn’t a headline — just a dad doing dad things. But the bar is sadly that low.
We still celebrate when a man simply acknowledges having a child, let alone doing their part to help raise them, while women in the workplace face a tremendous double standard as they balance supporting their family with their career.
This is more than just about doing the right thing — it’s a smart business decision. We employ humans, not robots, and if you’re expecting them to do great work, they need to be in a healthy state of mind.
Ohanian quoted the daunting statistic, ninety four per cent of low wage working people don’t have a single day of paid family leave.
He encouraged people to vote in the mid-term elections in favour of paid family leave for all.
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