Serena Williams stepped out and played her first game since birthing her daughter, in a sleek catsuit. Now we all know she’s fierce. She’s an amazing athlete who plays a competitive sport, but almost no one is her competition. She’s won more grand slams than she, or we can count. Williams is one of the most decorated Olympic Tennis players, second only to her sister Venus. And at this point, she’s earned the right as an athlete to play in what makes her comfortable.
But not everyone feels the same. The French Tennis Federation called out Williams for wearing the catsuit, stating it violated their dress code. Bernard Giudicelli even went so far as to call the suit disrespectful. The suit was designed by Nike to promote circulation. After the life-threatening birth of her daughter, this is a necessity for Williams. She’s prone to blood clots, and even the tiniest bit of overexertion without proper circulation could be harmful to her body. None of this seems to matter because they instituted a ban on the suit, and are planning on making the dress code even more strict.
Anne White, a former tennis player, came to Serena’s defense. She too faced the same scrutiny in the 80s at Wimbledon. White mentioned that she’s a huge fan of Serena’s, and feels that women should be able to wear what they want. Especially in this case where there is a legitimate reason for the suit. There has been some speculation that the ban was racially motivated. Though it’s clear this move was sexist, White doesn’t believe it’s a matter of black vs. white.
Serena has remained as humble as she always is in the wake of this controversy. Gracefully, she busted out her designer tutu and is still kicking butt.
