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‘You Can’t Live Without the Spine..’ – Serena Williams Once Gave Her Bold Take on How Mother Oracene’s Decision Impacted Their Lives

Published 02/28/2023, 10:10 AM EST

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Does not matter if you are a child or an adult, a common person or a superstar, parents’ divorce is always a thing that takes its toll on the children. And the same happened with Venus and Serena Williams when their parents got divorced. Now, the thing was, Serena Williams claimed it did not affect her as much. However, things did not manifest in reality the same way.

In her memoir, ‘Queen of the Court’, published in 2009, the 23-time Grand Slam champion talked about the impact of their divorce on her life and how she coped with that.

Serena Williams on how hers and Venus Williams’ life changed after their parents’ divorce

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The two grew up in a family where both parents put their best foot forward for the careers of their two daughters. And seeing them getting divorced was a shock for them.

Serena Williams talked about the impact of it all in her memoir, ‘Queen of the Court’. She talked about it a lot with Venus  and her other sisters. Being an adult, she understood it was not in her control to control the lives of their parents. However, talking about her faith and parents, she also stated, “And yet, the change still did its own little number on me.

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Nonetheless, Serena worried about the fact how would they function without each other. Because she assumed her mother to be the spine of the family. And her father to be the rest of the body. However, things did change. Realizing that their lives could go on the same way, she stated, “In the end, it was all just talk, because you can’t know a thing until you’re in its middle.” She wondered, “You can’t live without the spine, can you?”

Embracing the odd reality of how their parents were divorced, she got on with her day. She stated, “It weirds you out at first, but then you wake up the next morning and realize your life looks a whole lot like it did the day before.

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Furthermore, she added, “The people who love you still love you. The opportunities you’ve been reaching for your whole life are still there for the taking.” And this mindset let her overcome one of the most life-changing moments of her life.

Venus Williams on the undisputed role of her mother, Oracene Price 

People have hailed Richard Williams for being the major force behind the two players. The movie, ‘King Richard’ too highlighted his role solely. But, as per Venus Williams, the role their mother played did not get much limelight. As to her, she was the spine of the family, as mentioned by Serena in her memoir.

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WATCH THIS STORY: Will Smith Shows How King Richard Cast Trained Like Serena and Venus Williams

So, the divorce came when both of their daughters made a name for themselves in the sport and were mature enough to handle themselves.

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Written by:

Shivali Sharma

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Shivali Sharma is a tennis author at EssentiallySports. She has pursued her Master's in history from Himachal University, but her love for the game has driven her to write about tennis. Shivali is a huge fan of Naomi Osaka and admires Osaka not only for her on-court performances, but also for her off-court actions.
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Edited by:

Tony Thomas