Serena's just warming up.....advances to 2nd Rnd

Serena has defeated Kaia Kanepi 7-5, 6-3 in 1st Round Action today at Wimbledon. Serena never lost her serve and she remains perfect in 1st Rnd Grand Slam matches, 35-0. Congratulations Serena! As she and Kanepi walked off the court (after the match) they appeared to be having a very nice conversation which was full of smiles and some laughter. It might have been Kanepi giving Serena a compliment about her warm-up attire. (See images below). Serena's 2nd Rnd opponent will be Urszula Radwanska.

Serena's Nike Wimbledon Collection

Wimbledon: 1st Round (Monday)

vs
1st Round
Serena (USA)[6] vs. Kaia Kanepi (EST)
Serena leads Head-To-Head 1-0
1st match of the day on Court 1 @ 1pm (8am EST)

Practice makes perfect....

Serena Williams in action during practice before the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 21, 2008 in London, England.

Wimbledon Draw....GAME ON!

The 2008 Wimbledon draw has been released and it is wonderful to know that Venus and Serena are on OPPOSITE SIDES of the draw! This means that we have the makings of a potential ALL-WILLIAMS Final! The Sisters are also playing doubles! I'm really excited about the fact that the Sisters can (and probably will) rule the roost at this year's Wimbledon. Serena's path to her 3rd Wimbledon crown could run through the following:

1st Round - Kaia Kanepi

2nd Round - Urszula Radwanska

3rd Round - Amelie Mauresmo

4th Round - Marion Bartoli

Quarter - Svetlana Kuznetsova

Semi - Ana Ivanovic

Final - Venus Williams / Maria Sharapova / Jelena Jankovic

To view the complete Women's singles/doubles draw visit the official Wimbledon website: http://www.wimbledon.org/

Serena attends Pre-Wimbledon Player Party

Serena Williams wearing $2 million worth of Duttson diamonds arrives at the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour pre-Wimbledon Player Party at Kensington Roof Gardens on 19 June, 2008 in London, England.

Serena helps launch "Looking For A Hero?"

Serena helped launch the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour's new, "Looking For A Hero?" advertising campaign at the Charlotte Street Hotel in London.

Noteworthy Statistic

It can be very difficult to win the French Open and transition to grass a few weeks later and win Wimbledon. No man has managed it since Bjorn Borg in 1980. The only woman to do it in the last decade was Serena Williams in 2002.

WTA "Looking For a Hero?" 30sec commercial

Serena's a "HERO"

The WTA Tour Has Launched Largest Ad Campaign in its History: Landmark multi-million dollar "Looking for a Hero?" campaign to be rolled out across 75 countries over next 18 months.

The 60- and 30-second television advertisements are the pinnacle of the Tour's multi-million dollar, pioneering global marketing campaign which will also include print and digital advertising, along with viral and community generated elements. In all, the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour expects to invest $15 million in the campaign over the course of the next three years. Over thirty players took part in the film and photographic shoot for the campaign which took place at various locations in Rome, Italy, at the start of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia tournament in May 2008.

The advertisements ask the question 'Looking for a Hero?' and bills the Tour's players as superheroes both on and off the court. The focus of the first round of the creative is to both elevate the star power of the Tour's athletes and to drive awareness of the Tour's end of season Sony Ericsson Championships, in Doha, Qatar, where the top eight singles players and top four doubles teams in the world compete for one of the most prized crowns in the sport.

Serena Williams, one of 10 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour stars who appears in the television commercial said: 'Women's tennis is a premier sport for all women athletes, and I think it was a great opportunity to have the best athletes, female athletes, get together and be a part of such a wonderful advertisement. I was really happy to have an opportunity to be in it. I was more than excited to do it." For more information and to view the TV commercials, visit http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/lookingforahero/.

Could Serena be the Kid's Choice?

Serena is nominated for the Female Athlete KID'S CHOICE Award. Other nominees include: Danica Patrick - Indy Racing, Shawn Johnson- Gymnast, Maria Sharapova - Tennis, and Candace Parker- Basketball. Fans ages 13-19 can vote once each day for their favorite nominees at www.TeenChoiceAwards.com. Winners will be announced Monday, Aug. 4 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

TENNIS Magazine's Wimbledon Preview

The July 2008 issue of TENNIS Magazine (w/ Roger Federer on the cover) includes a Wimbledon Preview. Stephen Tignor (Executive Editor) analyzes 7 players on both the ATP and WTA tour. He gives insight as to where (and why) he thinks they will stand (or fall) during the tournament. On page 38, these are his exact words on Serena:

"The last year and a half have been a time of transition for Serena Williams. She began 2007 with a patented lightning run to the Australian Open title. It seemed that she had proven again that when she focuses, nobody can hang with her. Then a funny thing happened: somebody hung with her. That was Henin, of course, who beat Williams in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. This is something new for Williams, now 26 and an 11-year tour veteran. How she reacts will set the tone for the rest of her career. She began her counterattack on a high note this spring, winning three straight tournaments and humbling Henin 6-2, 6-0 in Key Biscane.

During that run, Williams showed why, no matter how rusty or erratic or out of sorts she may be, she remains a formidable challenge for anyone. Serena's secret is simple - nobody hits the ball better than she does. While her footwork may leave her out of position, all she needs is a good swing at a ball in her strike zone. The result, more times than not, is a shriek, a bullet into the corner, and an opponent left flailing hopelessly. It's still hard to hang with that.

FORTNIGHT FORECAST: Williams, a two-time Wimbledon champion, believes she can win anywhere but she's even more sure of herself in London. She has the best serve in women's tennis and her straight-back, straight-forward strokes work well on grass. The flat shots they produce only travel faster on Centre Court."

PREDICTION: CHAMPION

Serena's on the list...."The Black List"

The always caring and concerned Serena Williams contributes to "The Black List." “The Black List” is a documentary which seeks to bury the negative weight of the term by allowing African-Americans to provide an up-to-the-minute answer to the grim origins of “blacklist.” In a film that works as series of living portraits, twenty-five prominent African Americans of various professions, disciplines and backgrounds offer their own stories and insights on the struggles, triumphs and joys of black life in this country and manage to re-define “blacklist” for a new century in the process.

It is comprised of an HBO documentary film, a museum exhibition of photographic portraits, a forthcoming book of those photographs and a national interactive, curriculum-based educational program. The film is presented as a series of vignettes – a kind of living portraiture – in which the subjects address the camera directly as they tell their stories.

Timothy Greenfield-Sanders directed the film in collaboration with Elvis Mitchell who conducted the interviews. Mitchell is never seen on camera or heard, thus allowing the subjects’ own voices to remain the focus. "The Black List" film premieres on HBO August 25th. Each compelling interview serves as a potent illustration of empowerment in the face of unique limitations and broader obstacles. For more information, visit www.blacklistproject.com.

Seeing Double(s) at Wimbledon

Venus and Serena have entered the doubles draw at Wimbledon. These two really bring excitement, power, drama and skill to the game. People say what they will (about the sisters) but they know deep down within to NEVER count them out, especially at a Grand Slam, playing well or not. They are truly an unpredictable force of nature which tennis has never seen: Sisters (both former World #1s) that own multiple Grand Slam singles and doubles titles; having achieved the Career Grand Slam Doubles (together) and Serena capturing the Career Grand Slam in singles; Venus w/ the Olympic Gold medal in singles and capturing Olympic Doubles Gold glory w/ Serena; 67 singles titles between the two of them and that's just the tip of the iceberg!

The Williams sisters have proved to be an almost unstoppable force when they team up: they have won six grand slam titles, two each in Melbourne and Wimbledon and one at the French and U.S. Open. They also struck gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and are one of only five pairings who have won all four women's grand slam doubles titles.

The sisters in full flight on the same side of the net is one of the greatest sights in tennis. They are also one of the most skilled pairings on the world circuit with an incredibly successful record in doubles. The sisters have done so much and I have a strong feeling that they are not done yet. With grass under their feet and being (to my knowledge) injury-free, all I can say is......GAME ON!

Serena's on "the list" - FORBES (Celebrity 100)

Serena is # 69 on the FORBES Celebrity 100 List. "The younger Williams sister is back with three tournament wins so far in 2008 after chalking up only three wins in the three previous years combined. She signed a $2 million deal with Hewlett-Packard that adds to her hefty endorsement income, and she partners with Kraft, Nike and Wilson. Her $19 million in career prize money is the sixth highest among female tennis players."


The Celebrity 100 is Forbes' list of the world's most powerful--and best-paid--celebrities. To generate the list, Forbes estimates celebrity earnings, then factors in media metrics like Google hits, press mentions as compiled by Factiva, TV/radio mentions from Lexis/Nexis and the number of times an A-lister appears on the cover of more than 50 consumer magazines.

U.S. Open tickets NOW on Sale!

U.S. Open tickets are now on sale. For more information and to purchase tickets visit the Official U.S. Open website:

http://www.usopen.org/home/default.sps

IT'S SHOWTIME!

Serena pushes summer fun to the next level

More pics from the Ebony photoshoot

Serena sizzles on cover of Ebony Magazine

EBONY Exclusive: Serena Discusses Dating, Olympic Bid and Staying Fit

There’s no match for Serena Williams on or off the court. Showing off her stellar brick-house physique, the 5-foot-9 1/2-inch tennis star and Olympic gold-hopeful hung out with EBONY magazine in Malibu, Calif., in an exclusive cover shoot. To keep her body in top condition, Serena indulges in scrumptious salads, which include feta cheese, candied walnuts and strawberries. “It’s too hot in the summer to cook, so I love to grill chicken and fish,” she adds."I also love to grill vegetables and serve them chilled.” When asked about her rumored love interest, Common, Serena had this to say, “I think he’s a great guy. He’s obviously a great artist who is timeless and classic. You can’t beat that. But I have to focus on tennis because that’s my goal in life.”

Check out the Ebony photoshoot below:

http://www.ebonyjet.com/ebony/

Beijing 2008 Olympic Games

According to the Associated Press, "The U.S. women's tennis team is expected to include Venus and Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Ashley Harkleroad and top-ranked doubles player Liezel Huber. The Williams sisters are likely to play doubles together, as well as singles."