‘Criticism Can Bring the Best..’ – Venus and Serena Williams’ Father Once Used ‘Heckling’ as a Tool to Train His Daughters
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The Story of Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena Williams has achieved legendary status. Especially after the release of the movie ‘King Richard’ last year. Moreover, the movie received six Oscar nominations and won one of them, Will Smith received the Oscar for playing Richard Williams in the movie.
Although they told a beautiful story about Venus and Serena’s father, they also had to tweak many stories and timelines. However, one particular story was certainly pretty intriguing, which was not in the movie. Interestingly, Richard Williams himself told that story.
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Venus and Serena Williams’ father used unusual tactics to train them
According to Richard Williams, both Venus and Serena were born in Long Beach. However, Williams shifted to Compton, as he believed champion players come out of slum areas or Ghettos. “What led me to Compton was my belief that the greatest champions came out of the Ghetto. I had studied sports successes like Muhammad Ali and great thinkers like Malcolm X. I saw where they came from,” Williams said.
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In another interesting story, Williams revealed that he used to pay schoolchildren to hurl insults at Venus and Serena while they were playing. According to him, these heckling tactics would make both Venus and Serena stronger. “In order to be successful you must prepare for the unexpected — and I wanted to prepare for that. Criticism can bring the best out of you,” he further said.
Because of his unconventional tactics, many used to call him a ‘crazy person.’ Even though his tactics were unusual, they proved to be right and made both of his daughters tough and also made them such champion players.
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Other people who helped Venus and Serena become such legendary players
No doubt, Richard played probably the most important role in Venus and Serena’s lives to help them become such great players. However, their mother, Oracene Price, also played a crucial role in their lives. Especially the open stance of Venus and Serena came from their mother. Also, in the movie we saw, Oracene helping Serena with her serve while Richard was busy with Venus.
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Watch this Story: Serena Williams’ Florida-based house to be sold owing to bankruptcy of Richard Williams’ estranged wife
Apart from her, their childhood coach Rick Macci also played a pivotal part in the development of their game. Now, many people call Serena the greatest player of all time, as she won 23 Grand Slam titles. As for Venus, she achieved legendary status as well by winning 7 Grand Slam titles in her career.
Edited by:
Deepakshi Chaudhary