Here are some photos of Serena Williams at the Wimbledon Champions’ dinner on Sunday night in London. A lot of outlets are describing her dress as white, but it’s pale pink, isn’t it? Are my eyes playing tricks on me? Anyway, she looked fabulous and righteous, albeit a little bit pageant-y with the cut of this dress. Like, I could easily see this on Carrie Underwood (and I would hate it on Carrie). Before I get to the bad shiz, please enjoy this super-awkward dance-off between Serena and Men’s Final winner Novak Djokovic. I feel like Serena is slightly embarrassed to be seen with Novak (who is literally doing the pointed-finger dad dance), but I loved the hug at the end!
WATCH… Night Fever dance for #Wimbledon champions @DjokerNole and @serenawilliams http://t.co/u0b2Yb4h8d
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2015
Now, on to the bad stuff. As we discussed yesterday, the New York Times published an insulting article about the women of tennis and their body image on the eve of Serena’s victorious Wimbledon Final. The piece included quotes from Serena, for sure, but as I said yesterday, there were some editorial choices at work, plus a pointed selection of bitchy quotes that made the piece seem like it was designed specifically to insult Serena for being “too muscular” and “too strong.” In any case, the NYT’s ombudsman published an article about the backlash against the NYT – you can read the piece here.
I would recommend reading it because it’s a good example (yet again) of out-of-touch the NYT’s editors are. It didn’t occur to any of them that it was a terrible idea to simply publish an article which judged and shamed the most dominant female athlete of her generation – and judged and shamed her because of HER BODY. Her strong, capable, amazing, WINNING body. It didn’t occur to the editors that it was an especially bad idea to publish on the eve of Serena’s win. It didn’t occur to the editors that the article implicitly and explicitly supported white-only beauty and body standards to elite athletes. And it also didn’t occur to the NY Times’ ombudsman to apologize. Seriously, go and read it. The ombudsman didn’t apologize.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
She looks fantastic – healthy, fit, strong and beautiful in equal measures. People are just plain daft (understatement!) and I hope that she pays them not one tiny bit of notice.
She looks gorgeous. And, yeah, I’d love to have arms that toned.
I’ll say it again, but during the off season, Serena’s body has often looked a lot like Naomi Campbell’s. They have a similar frame. Serena just gets stronger and more muscular for her sport (while Naomi keeps her muscles long and her body has zero fat–she has a different job to do, after all). See here: http://80s-90s-supermodels.tumblr.com/post/84444587438/naomi-campbell-mid-90s, here: http://www.gotceleb.com/wp-content/uploads/celebrities/naomi-campbell/wearing-bikini-in-ibiza/Naomi-Campbell-Bikini-in-Ibiza–05.jpg, here: http://media3.popsugar-assets.com/files/ons1/192/1922398/33_2009/INFphoto_1043379wtmk/i/Photos-Bikini-Clad-Naomi-Campbell-Vacation-Boyfriend-Vladislav-Doronin.jpg, and for comparison, here: http://static.celebuzz.com/uploads/2013/06/15/serena-williams-bikini-beach-miami-061513-4.jpg.
Now, if you accept my observation, first come at me and tell me Naomi ain’t a goddess, because 1. Them’s fightin’ words…and Naomi can fight! And 2. If Naomi is a goddess with that body, then by the transitive property, QED: so is Serena.
Both those ladies are putting my flabby butt to shame, seriously why are people still confused about different body types in 2015. Serena is BUILT and that body is a freaking temple.
Sr168, Pinky, The Eternal Side-Eye, couldn’t agree more. Serena is built and gorgeous.
The Washington Post went after Serena a few years ago, suggesting her tennis outfits were more suited to streetwalkers than tennis players. As I said then, and I say now, “if you got it, flaunt it” … and Sernena has most definitely got it!
JK Rowling took care of everything:
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/55a1927be4b0ecec71bc4cbf
I’m not sure if the NYT are oblivious, misogynist, full of old people who are out of touch, or just desperate for attention.
Eh, I’ll go with all of the above.
It’s like those old white guys were like, “Eh, *I* don’t find her attractive, therefore she isn’t attractive,” and decided to write an article with that in mind. Like, um, she’s a tennis champion, why does your opinion of her appearance even matter here? Sadly I’ve heard other (usually white) guys give similar opinions in real life. I’m like, so what? Women shouldn’t have to live and die by arbitrary male hotness standards.
I disagree that the article was sexist. Anyone who watches women’s tennis would notice how strong and muscular Serena is compared to her counterparts. And how incredible of a player she is. The article wasn’t insulting her. It was pointing out that there is a problem in tennis and society as a whole. The problem is that women tennis players are viewed as being ornaments. And the athletes play into it. Maria Sharapova takes home way more in endorsements than Serena. Serena, on the other hand, takes home way more prize money that Sharapova. Why is that? I thought that the article pointed out the silly lens through which women tennis players are viewed and it actually ended with an up and coming player saying that she was going to bulk up as much as possible if that meant bringing home trophies. As a woman who weight trains and who is on the bulkier side, I didn’t think the article lambasted Serena for being muscular. There was a penumbra of praise for her because she is breaking the mold. I viewed this article as exposing a ridiculous expectation of women tennis players that actually results in a less optimized sport.
Thank you for giving a different perspective.
I totally agree. If anything, I think the article subtly shaded the athletes who shied away from building muscle to be better at their sport. Made them look shallow and vain. I didn’t see a Serena shade at all.
Thank you! For a while, I was wondering if I’d read the same article as those people who were reacting so strongly against it.
That The Grey Lady has fallen, there is no doubt; but this particular instance is certainly not an effective example to cite as a reason re why or how or when to bemoan the increasing irrelevance of a once-great editorial authority.
If anything, Ms. Williams comes out, yet again, as triumphant, self-accepting and aware; her victories have been hard-won in many ways. Can’t say the same about others referenced in the article… and for good reason.
But it is a topic worthy of continued discussion and examination, and the NYT is still not wrong or sexist to acknowledge and address it.
That is how I read it too and as a muscular strong woman I was not offended in the least! In fact I appreciated reading the part about how it took Serena a while to learn to appreciate her body because the same thing happened to me.
It is absolutely the truth that some women think bulking up, and possibly looking what they consider to be less feminine, is terrifying. When you are muscular you become very aware of this. It should not be like this, but it is! The article was just pointing it out.
I thought it was sexist insofar as it was an article about female tennis players focusing solely on their bodies. I can’t imagine a similar article about male tennis players. It also seemed like they went out of their way to find male coaches who would make stupid sexist comments rather than talking to the athletes themselves. But I didn’t find the article specifically critical of Serena.
I agree. The piece seemed complementary of Serena’s skills, athletic abilities, and her body. But I can totally see the other side. There was no reason to focus/write a piece like that when she’s making history. I can see how men wouldn’t be put to the same commentary and the fact that Serena is black, female, successful, and powerful as the reasons why that article was written in the first place.
Wil Wheaton noted that male athletes would never be subjected to that level of body-shaming. I think he has a point.
I don’t think I’ve witnessed or read about ANY body-shaming of male athletes on any level. Like, ever. At all. Period.
The fact that this is even a discussion is insulting and just highlights the fact that a woman’s #1 job in life is to be decorative and if she fails at that, all her other accomplishments are diminished.
John Daly. Craig Stadler (The Walrus) That pitcher who is really huge….played for the Yankees??? Charles Barkley (The Round Mound of Rebound). 4 who come to mind. But I can’t think of many others.
Colin Montgomery the golfer was disparaged for being tubby. But disparagement of women is more common and more sexualised and more unpleasant.
The other difference is that all the male athletes named here would have been criticized for appearing to have a body that’s not in shape or up to competitively performing elite athletics. Serena’s body is critiqued for actually BEING in shape to perform her job at the top level.
I read it differently. I read it as making a good point about how society’s expectations of how women’s bodies should look have become so pervasive that top level sportswomen are more concerned about conforming to beauty standards than achieving their full sporting potential. It was sad to read that sportswomen saw pictures of themselves competing and instead of feeling proud of their strength and of the work they had put in to achieve sporting excellence, instead were focusing on their physical appearance. I interpreted the article as praising Serena Williams for breaking down beauty standards and being proud of her athletic body, as she should be. The final line of the article: “If it’s what you need to lift trophies, who cares what you look like?”, supports this interpretation.
I kind of read it the same way…? It was like, these women have issues, Serena doesn’t, and guess who’s the champion?
I think they should have apologized for that tweet where they quoted that coach talking about his player. When you present a comment like that without any context, you’re supporting it by giving it a platform. Tasteless.
Completely agree. The article exposed racism and sexism in tennis but wasn’t, itself, either if those things.
I sort of read it that way too. Like Serena isn’t afraid to forego a “pretty pretty princess tennis fairy” image if that’s what it takes to win. Now where the author was tone deaf and stupid was assuming that not looking like said pretty princess tennis fairy was somehow ugly or undesirable, as if you have to trade beauty for success. Ugh.
Also, I love her friendship with Caroline Wozniacki. Couldn’t more outlets focus on that instead of the stupid girl fight with Sharapova?
To me, the last line of the article does imply that something isn’t “nice” or “attractive” about how Selena looks.
Overall I was more disgusted by the comments allegedly made by other coaches. Women’s tennis has a major issue.
I found it a little offputting that it implies Serena’s body is what keeps her at the top of the game, though. Sure, she’s got an incredible body, but to be a top athlete, you have to be SMART. You have to know how to strategize, keep your cool, and know how to play the game. In the end, the article ultimately described female athletes the same way women are always defined – by their looks.
That’s how I took the article too. To me, they were showing how so many of the female athletes were trying not to be muscular despite the advantages it would give them in their sport.
Completely agree, I went and found the article and read it just now having skimmed the other post about it. It is not remotely body shaming or racist, although the fact that it became a Serena vs. all of Tennis would of course immediately give it racial overtones. The author himself agreed that the focus on Serena as a foil for the other players was misguided. In the end, it was exposing the dangerous biases of the white coaches and players who strive to be skinny or skinnier despite the technical advantage of strength, not that Serena should be ashamed of her body. The quotes of the European coaches seemed ridiculous and out of touch. I agree Veronica that the focus on strength appears to equate it with winning when there is so much more to success, but the article does not claim that Serena’s victories are purely driven by strength whereas other players require more finesse, skill, talent, etc. The focus for all players was strength and size, which makes the whole piece short-sighted and unformed but not racist.
Thank you anibee!
She looks good. I look at her and see power, her body & smarts have made her into an amazing athlete.. She deserves respect for her accomplishments, not scorn for her body type.
She does look phenomenal. I would love to look so powerful but I fully admit to lacking any will power. *settles in for some biscuits and tea*
I haven’t read it yet, not sure I will tbh because whatever old white dudes, Serena is kickass and we all know it – seems particularly apt with amazing ads like this one – https://vimeo.com/105591244 showing how hard she works and how amazing her body is (she has recently talked about her lifelong struggle to accept her natural shape, so this is all even more ridiculous and out of step with the times. She is one of if not the greatest female athlete ever, I have no time for this stupidity.
My bad, that ad has been out for a little while but I somehow only just saw it for the first time this week on U.K. t.v. -glad they are reviving it anyway!
I think she’s got enormous muscles, but still looks like a woman.
Question (I’m not that into tennis): is she probably taking steroids or stuff like that or is it just her body type/hard work?
Seeing as they get regularly tested for drugs like any other athlete and neither Williams sister has ever had any hint of problems with missed tests that I know of my money would be on no. I think Serena has her Mom’s build, whereas Venus is more naturally slim. Serena has said recently that she used to not lift weights or do anything other than toning type stuff because she was self conscious of her build. I have known girls like this who are just naturally more inclined to have muscle, of different races and builds, personally my flabby toneless self has to work at it and I’m envious of anyone who can get actual muscles.
There is stuff that can’t be tested I think. Whatever, her muscles are really impressive. I feel unless women starve themselves they have to work out so hard to get visible muscles. Like you said she’s probably naturally inclined to have muscles.
But that was part of the article – her talking about how she didn’t always love her body type.
That original article was full of implicit racism. Serena Williams doesn’t have a stereotypical “white” body and the critcism rested on that. So disgusting. The “apology” was tone deaf. Yes, we talk about male athlete’s bodies, but not in the same way. There’d never be an article about men choosing not to create powerful muscular bodies to protect their masculinity. So gross.
For real. I don’t see how people can’t see how much of an insult it is to Serena to effectively say that she’s so brave for choosing to be so hideous to white people. If only these delicate white flowers weren’t hamstrung by the burden of being more beautiful than hideous Serena, they would totally take her down. It’s not that they’re embarrassingly inferior, it’s the pressure man. Nothing to show for all of that cursed white beauty but millions of dollars in endorsements that Serena couldn’t sniff at. What will satisfy them on her part? Mental breakdown, accidents? What kind of punishment will she have to endure before people decide they can stop punishing her?
I get what you’re saying, and I’m not American so maybe don’t fully appreciate the subtext. I just thought of Serena as having a powerful athletic physique rather than a typically black physique, and this is what I thought the article was commenting on. I’m a circus aerialist and we also tend to have a lot of muscles which is personally how I like my body to be, I wouldn’t say the only white standard of beauty is tall and thin.
Racists gonna race. Haters gonna hate.
Toody gonna speak truth. Eternal gonna nod.
Uh-huh.
The ombudsman, in a twisted way, basically said the article would have been better had it been a different article, but used pretzel logic to try to make the existing article the one she wished it was, trying to elevate points and discussion it never established.
The entire article was how women in tennis feel self-conscious about their bodies and the cause is hinted at when the author brings up the male perspective of ‘who is hot in women’s tennis’.
The writer substituted player quotes for in depth analysis and editorial, and at its best it’s simply a bunch of quotes that lead nowhere in forming a cohesive narrative, other than Serena is comfortable with her body. That she subsequently won is actually the point that would have made the article better had the writer waited for that outcome.
It’s a hack job, demonstrating access. But more than anything, it makes the editors seem clueless, or less than interested in the subject because, after all, it’s only womens’ tennis, not something important like male dominated sports, where you might have to come to some conclusion and hash out the points.
Stands up and applauds. This is one of the most hackneyed attempts at article writing I’ve ever seen, and the fact that she pretzel logiced her way into avoiding acknowledging the inherent racial and gender biases within it is shocking.
When I get to read an in depth analysis about Roger Federer’s body….and believe me, I would MAKE TIME to read such an article, these asshats can talk to me about the body image of female athletes, and not a moment before.
This is an awesome article and you are an awesome writer. Thank you so much for taking a stand and covering this revolting NYT’s piece.
I admire Serena and what she has achieved but this article needs to be bashed by the WTA players. Horrible accusations are thrown to all of them, accusations that they are not giving 100% on court in favor of modelling – this is their fight. And you know what? We are already paying to see their matches.
They all have social media, why hasn’t a big name replied yet? Maybe because they only use the social media to sell, not have opinions, because girls are only pretty, not intelligent.
After Serena quits, there will be no more WTA, it will only be ‘girls’ trying to be pretty – whatever the hell that means.
Under these circumstances, the NYT are just sharks that smell blood in the water.
I don’t understand this new trend of the media to play the victim. If they just reported the news and stopped interjecting opinion and bias then they wouldn’t get reaction and anger. But as of now they aren’t just giving us the news so they get called out and then they play the victim! Stop it, do your jobs and people won’t attack you.
Also if you wanted to write an article about the unfair standards of body image for women athletes you should have written that, but you didn’t. Now have a seat!
She doesn’t fit the cookie cutter size zero Hollywood standard of beauty. And those who do could never hope to achieve anything close to what she has. She’s a spectacular athlete; instead of body shaming her she should be put forth as an example of an accomplished woman.
Everyone here makes valid points, and I’ll restate one that’s been made time and time again: Serena is one Grand Slam championship away from tying Steffi Graf for the winningest women’s tennis champion of all time, yet everywhere, everyone is talking about her body as if it’s a piece of public property. She is a tennis goddess, and we should be talking about her skill and her sport (not to mention her amazing story). The other women’s tennis players in the article mostly come across as snarky and jealous and with an implied undertone of “If I have to look like Serena to become the best of all time, no thanks.” Serena will be a legend, and the rest of them will still be fawning in their mirrors. As a female athlete who found my muscle and confidence late in life, I’ve had to learn to completely ignore my family members who say I’m getting too muscular. It’s nobody’s business what Serena or I look like. It reveals the sexist and misogynist atmosphere in which female athletes have to try to compete today.
+ a million!! Wow – nicely said (to your whole comment)!
Serena, Tennis Goddess. Works for me!
Yes yes yes! I have YET to read an article about a male athlete who has to answer to such nonsense, at any age or level of ability. We can’t just celebrate our athleticism…it has to look right too!? Up yours NYT…I know there’s more than one of us on here who would love to aim a two-handed backhand to the back of the Ombudsman’s head, or perhaps a kettle bell up the ass? Dealers choice.
++ million. It’s VERY telling that they choose to write on an article focusing on her body. That choice prioritizes looks over talent right there. Women who are successful athletes have to deal with this stupid idea that they are less than if they don’t fall into a stereotypical waif body-type mold. The article reinforces that viewpoint. It reads like a snarky tabloid to me. What a sorry excuse of a paper the NY Times has become.
Oh eff Ben Rothenberg and NYT. The article concern trolls muscular women athletes while helpfully pointing out how unfeminine they supposedly are. She will end her athletic career a winner of historic proportions, while Ben Rothenberg is still huffing and puffing around the Central Park Reservoir and following a salt-free diet.
Applause…..and laughter for the DASH diet reference. Good for you Rothenberg…see you in the cardiac cath lab you douche.
Yep. An ombudsman is not supposed to speak like a representative of a company, they’re employed as an independent, in-house critic. It’s not their role to apologise at all. That’s like expecting a food critic to apologise when they get served bad food. The job is to to provide transparency. To describe what happened and how it happened.
Totally agree, great observations.
Could it possibly be the whole issue about female athletes in general? She may have the talent and skills to win championships, but if some guys can’t see that athlete posing in Playboy she’s not worth the bother. I don’t know if it’s still going, but I remember a time that women athletes were posing in men’s mags in bikinis, topless, or nude (strategically covered) to get attention for themselves or the sport.
Kaiser, you are so articulate and spot on; do you think you could send your post to the NYT? You said it perfectly.
The problem with the article was the focus on aesthetics over performance, also the idea that women athletes are “choosing their physiques,” even though the article itself demonstrates that it’s not all about choice. The line in the article that bothered me the most was the one about players “choosing not” to look like Serena. Most women could never have Serena’s arms no matter how much they weight trained! She herself says in the article that she never lifts weights because they make her bulk up. She is naturally muscular and athletically gifted–as well as working very hard. The quote from Radwanska’s coach is unfortunate and I think possibly a product in part of English not being his first language, at least I’m going to assume that because it is such a clumsy comment. But I think what he was trying to say is that Radwanska’s peak form is to stay on the smaller side because her game depends on speed and finesse. I don’t think Radwanska would actually choose not to gain 15 lbs of muscle if it made her as good as Serena! But it wouldn’t because that’s not her game. It’s like when Jelena Jankovic put on a bunch of muscle and suddenly wasn’t as good. Serena is blessed to be able to combine such grace and speed with strength but not everyone can do that. The problem with the article was the framing of pieces of information in such a way as to make it seem female athletes are more concerned with aesthetics than with performance which I don’t think they are. For a nice contrast see ESPNs the Body feature. Those features are very empowering for a whole range of body types and sports and the female athletes talk about how their quest for peak performance in their sports shape their bodies and they wouldn’t have it any other way.
Great comment, totally agree
No, it’s pink.
Would respectfully suggest that the article itself – acknowledging an existing conversation, no matter how odious – is not the problem… but the fact that it exists highlighted – in a dearth of coverage for far more important aspects of Serena Williams’ accomplishments and skills – may be the issue of real contention here?
Serena has unbelievable talent, focus, and dedication. She perfected her talent by persistently and consistently training and working hard. For over a decade she has dominated the sport. She just achieved a major milestone. I doubt another player like her (male or female) will come along again in my lifetime. For me, she epitomizes the American Dream (work hard, believe in yourself, never give up) -heck, she once tried to continue playing when she was sick and almost passed out on the court. There is so much to write about her. She is amazing……. and the NYT wants to write a derogatory piece about her body? In her moment of triumph, the NYT wants to compare her top professional athletic physique to the unrealistic, photo-shopped, unhealthy physical ideal set for women?
I’m tired of women reaching the pinnacle of success only to have society try to overshadow their success with a derogatory conversation about their looks.
IMHO she is beautiful and has an amazing body. I would die for her hourglass figure not to mention that face.
Sorry NYT you are going to have to try to find another way to belittle this successful woman because she wins in both the looks and career department.
Uh, it’s not the public editor’s job to apologize for the newspaper. She’s not a spokesperson. She’s an independent commentator and a link between readers and editors. Her job is to air grievances and offer her own opinion. Which she did.