Sport
Venus Williams motivated by up-coming Olympics
“Three, one in Sydney and two in Beijing,” she says. “No, wait. I want to get that right. Two in Sydney and one in Beijing.”
That’s correct: She won the gold medal in singles in 2000 at Sydney, and teamed with her sister Serena to win the gold in doubles at Sydney and again in 2008 at Beijing. She also competed in singles in 2004 at Athens, losing in the third round.
Williams hopes to team with Serena in doubles again and also play singles. Mixed doubles, a new Olympic event this year, is probably out.
“I used to think about mixed,” she says. “But that’s a lot of tennis.”
Williams’ disease, Sjogren’s syndrome, has forced her to pace herself. She says most of energy is devoted to matches and training, which means taking it easy when she’s not in the gym or on the court.
“My life is one big workout,” she says.
She lives in Palm Beach Gardens with Serena, her best friend and biggest fan, who concedes Venus now tires more easily than in the past.
