Venus Williams, 45, hadn’t performed skilled tennis in a 12 months and a half. However she performed within the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C. this week, and for a stunning motive.
“I needed to come again for the insurance coverage,” Williams stated after successful the primary spherical. (She misplaced within the second spherical on Thursday.)
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“They knowledgeable me this 12 months that I am on COBRA, so it is like, I acquired to get my advantages on,” Williams added.
The group laughed, however Williams gave the impression to be severe.
Venus Williams after turning into the oldest WTA match winner since 2004:
“I needed to come again for the insurance coverage, as a result of they knowledgeable me this 12 months that I am on cobra. So it is like, I acquired to get my advantages on” ????
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 23, 2025
“I am at all times on the physician, so I want this insurance coverage,” she stated.
Williams has been open about her battle with uterine fibroids, telling NBC Information Now earlier this month that the situation has affected her for 30 years.
MarketWatch studies that Ladies’s Tennis Affiliation (WTA) gamers are supplied insurance policy that present world protection for the tour’s intensive journey necessities, however athletes want to satisfy sure necessities to qualify.
“Participant members which can be eligible for such entry to medical health insurance should be contained in the rankings of 500 in singles or 175 in doubles and have performed a minimal of three WTA 250-level and above occasions, together with Grand Slams, within the final 12 months,” a WTA spokesperson instructed MarketWatch.
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This implies we might see Williams on the skilled court docket once more quickly. It is also raised many questions and feedback, particularly on Reddit, which was co-founded by Venus’s brother-in-law, Alexis Ohanian, concerning the worth of well being care within the U.S.
In line with ESPN, Williams made greater than $42 million enjoying skilled tennis, throughout which she gained 49 singles titles, together with 5 Wimbledon and two U.S. Open Championships. Williams additionally gained 4 Olympic gold medals.
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