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By Amy Tannery and Dhruv Munjal
NEW YORK (Reuters) – From the covers of glossy magazines to the court styles of her generation, Serena Williams has rewritten the fashion playbook for female athletes as she builds her own empire.
The 23-time Grand Slam winner chose women’s fashion bible Vogue to reveal that she is “stepping away from tennis” before taking to the court in her stunning pair of Nike sneakers at the US Open this week, according to the magazine. Grand Dame Anna Wintour
The highly competitive Queen of Queens lost to Ajala Tomjanovic 6-1 in the third round in what was expected to be the final. in place.
“Style and sports have always been closely linked, but no athlete has embraced the power of fashion like Serena Williams,” Cathy Abel, editor-in-chief of Footwear News, told Reuters.
“She doesn’t shy away from boundary-breaking looks, on or off the court, and always knows how to deliver a controversial yet controversial message.
In the year She competed in a denim skirt at Flushing Meadows in 2004 and a featherweight at Roland-Garros in 2018, wearing a black catsuit to keep her blood flowing after suffering a blood clot in the days after giving birth.
Williams fans cried foul after organizers said they would ban the cat from their clay courts. “You don’t want to be a repeat offender when it comes to fashion,” Williams told The Associated Press.
Katie Lebel, a gender equity researcher and assistant professor at the University of Guelph, says the season was an instant classic and showed you can use fashion to disrupt the status quo.
“Sexism was very prevalent when it came to women’s clothing…expectations of what female athletes should look like were especially embedded in that,” she says.
“Serena comes in and pushes all of this. I think she really rethought the standards of consistency for women in tennis.
Serena and her sister Venus brought black style to the predominantly white sport when they first appeared on the professional court in the 1990s, when they were criticized for wearing beaded sweaters in competition.
Williams wore it in style as she won her first Grand Slam in New York. Photos of the same girl Olympia in the stands at Flushing Meadows this year were an instant sensation.
“Ever since Serena and her sister Venus stepped onto the court in their signature sweaters … they have been role models for black women and aspiring female athletes everywhere,” Abel said.
‘GLAM SLAM’
Williams’ friendship with late Louis Vuitton artistic director Virgil Abloh led to her most memorable 2018 US Open appearance in a ballerina-inspired Nike kit. The last one.
While her run at the US Open is over, her career in New York has just begun, previewing new looks from her S by Serena brand at the “Glam Slam” scheduled for September 12 to coincide with New York Fashion Week.
And her retirement from competitive sports is expected to have no effect on her brand value – Nike plans to continue its partnership with the 40-year-old.
“Williams may be retiring from tennis, but I suspect her influence on fashion is just beginning. “Without her training schedule, I think she would have more time and energy to focus on this category,” says W magazine fashion director Nora Milch.
A loyal fashion mogul off the court, Serena married in 2010. In 2019, she was invited to the board of the Poshmark shopping app, opening her own closet to customers from the Olympia fashion market.
According to Poshmark founder and CEO Manish Chandra Williams, Williams has inspired many other female entrepreneurs to sell on the app with her unique voice and perspective.
“As a champion of women’s empowerment, Serena is always driven by love and helps ensure that our Poshmark community is front and center in everything we do,” Chandra told Reuters.
“Her accomplishments and vision in the worlds of business, fashion and entrepreneurship make her a perfect fit for our board. . . . She leads with humility, kindness and authenticity.”
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York and Dhruv Munjal in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Rory Carroll in New York; Editing by William Mallard)
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