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Serena Williams On Criticism of Being In Interracial Relationship: ‘It’s Something That I Deal with Everyday’


Serena Williams is aware of the scrutiny surrounding her interracial relationship with Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and she says such negativity is nothing new.

“It’s something that I deal with everyday in my sport and playing a sport that has predominantly white people in it,” the 23-time Grand Slam champion tells Yahoo Sports Tuesday, July 18. “But for the most part, I don’t really pay attention to anything else because I always try to be different. I’ve always been different and I break different barriers. I think, at the end of the day, you just have to be happy with who you are and who you’re with and that’s what matters most. And everyone is allowed to have an opinion.”

Williams and Ohanian, who announced their engagement in December, months before saying they’re expecting their first child together, decided to tie the knot after dating for a year and a half. During the Ted 2017 conference in May, Williams said she wasn’t the marrying type but told Yahoo she was happy about taking her relationship with Ohanian to the next level.

“It felt good,” she says. “I was really excited and nervous at the same time, but it worked out. He’s great and we seem to really work well together. We’re really looking forward to our future.”

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