January 2017, two months into her pregnancy, tennis superstar Serena Williams competed in — and won — the Australian Open. At 20 weeks pregnant, with the smallest of baby bumps, she posted a picture on Snapchat of her athletic body, in a yellow swimsuit. Hers was a fortunate and healthy pregnancy, by any standard.
However, the days and weeks following the September birth of daughter Alexis Olympia was difficult, according to a recent Vogue magazine interview with the tennis champion.
When contractions began, baby Olympia’s heartrate plunged. An emergency cesarean section was performed, and Williams’ delivered her first child. Nearly a third of births in the United States are C-sections, and Williams’ procedure was flawless.
According to Vogue, Alexis Ohanian, the happy father and co-founder of Reddit, cut the cord, and Olympia was laid on her mother’s chest.
“And then everything went bad,” Williams, 36, told Vogue in an interview confirmed by her publicist. Her training schedule did not permit time for an interview with CNN.
Despite her obvious strength and good health, the world champion tennis player has a history of blood clots. Clots that form within veins or arteries disrupt the circulatory system and can damage the organs. Smoking, being overweight and obesity, and genetics are all factors that may cause blood clotting.
Williams takes blood thinners every day to prevent clots from forming. After the C-section, though, she stopped taking them to allow the surgical wound to heal.
The next day, off the “anticoagulant regimen” medication, the 23-time Grand Slam winner began to gasp as she recovered in her hospital room.
Not wanting to worry her visiting mother, Williams stepped into the hall and flagged a nearby nurse, insisting that she needed an IV with heparin, a blood thinner, and a CT scan to check for clots.
The nurse believed that medications might have befuddled Williams, Vogue says, but a doctor arrived — only to perform an ultrasound, and not the CT scan that Williams believed she needed.
Serena Williams’ decision not to defend her Australian Open title four months after giving birth to her first child had nothing to do with merely being able to play at Melbourne Park.
The seven-time Australian Open champion confirmed Friday she wouldn’t attempt to defend the title she won here last year, saying she wasn’t convinced she could win it.
Williams played in an exhibition tournament last weekend in Abu Dhabi to test her match condition, and indicated after her loss to French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko that she might not travel to Melbourne.
“After competing in Abu Dhabi I realized that although I am super close, I’m not where I personally want to be,” Williams said in a statement Friday. “My coach and team always said ‘Only go to tournaments when you are prepared to go all the way.’ I can compete – but I don’t want to just compete, I want to do far better than that and to do so, I will need a little more time.
“With that being said, and even though I am disappointed about it, I’ve decided not to compete in the Australian Open this year.”
Williams was pregnant when she won at Melbourne Park last year, her Open-era record 23rd Grand Slam singles title. She gave birth to her daughter, Alexis Olympia, in September.
Williams didn’t drop a set while winning last year’s title, and her victory helped her regain the world No.1 ranking.
The 36-year-old Williams needs only one more major title to equal the all-time record held by Margaret Court, who won 13 of her 24 Grand Slam titles before the Open era began in 1968.
Three women have returned after having babies to win Grand Slam singles titles in the Open era, including Court and fellow Australian Evonne Goolagong Cawley, who won the 1977 Australian Open seven months after giving birth to daughter, Kelly, and added her second Wimbledon title in 1980.
Kim Clijsters returned from retirement after having a daughter, Jada Elle, in February 2008, and won the 2009 U.S. Open in her third tournament back.
Williams’ withdrawal came less than 24 hours after fellow former world No. 1 Andy Murray withdrew from the men’s event with a chronic hip injury.
Other star players, including top-ranked Rafael Nadal, six-time champion Novak Djokovic and 2014 winner Stan Wawrinka, also are dealing with injuries.
Source:CNN
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