Venus Williams and Serena Williams may be one of the most famous sibling duos in sports, but they also grew up with three older sisters.
The Williams girls grew up in California with their father Richard Williams, mother Orasen Price, and half-sisters Yetunde, Lindrea, and Isha. Richard and Orasen married in 1980 and became stepfather to three children from Orasen's previous marriage to Yusef Rashid. Later that year, the couple welcomed Venus. Serena was born in 1981.
Richard and Orasen divorced in 2002, but the family of seven was immortalized in a 2021 Oscar-nominated film king richard, starring Will Smith. “I love that this movie depicts an innocence, and it's actually an innocence that we still hold on to, to say, 'Oh, this movie shows me.' 'Cause I'm Serena, she's my sister and I wouldn't exist without her. I also learned from watching her. entertainment weekly of the movie.
Serena and Venus have six other half-siblings on their father's side. sisters Sabrina and Renika; brothers Richard III, Loner and Rels, Chaboita and Dylan.
From their childhood in California to the sisters' business endeavors, here's everything you need to know about siblings Venus and Serena Williams.
Venus and Serena grew up with their parents and three older sisters
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The tennis stars grew up in Compton, California, with their parents and half-sisters Yetunde, Lindrea and Isha, before moving their family to Florida.
Richard is known for coaching Venus and Serena in tennis, but Orasen's eldest daughters also joined their younger sisters on the court, feeding them and picking up balls.
“It wasn't until I went to university that I realized that our lives were not what other people considered normal,” Isha said. new york times In 2007, their life centered around tennis began. She recalled that her bedtime was 10 p.m. and she didn't have many friends until she turned 18. Growing up, all my sisters shared the same room.
While talking with SheKnows about 2021 movies king richard, Venus spoke about her family relationships as follows: And it was very interesting how everyone in the cast acted, namely the girl Demi. [Singleton] and sania [Sidney] Me and the two people who play Serena were holding hands on set. And that's exactly what we're doing.And how much they respected Will. [Smith], it was very similar to how close we were with our father. In other words, that chemical reaction existed. It couldn't have been more perfect. ”
Venus and Serena have six half-siblings from their father.
Venus and Serena's father was married to his first wife, Betty Johnson, before he met their mother. Richard and Betty married in 1965 and had five children, Sabrina, Richard III, Lonar, Rels, and Renika, but divorced in 1973. He also has a son, Dylan Starr Richard, born in 2012, and a son, Chaboita, with his third wife, Lakisha Juanita Graham. LeSane from a previous relationship.
They have worked professionally with the sisters
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The tennis stars have worked together with their sisters in various capacities over the years.
Lyndrea has experience in the fashion industry and collaborates with Venus on EleVen, a fashion brand for athletes.
Isha is a lawyer and film producer who graduated from Georgetown University Law Center and Howard University. She worked on her family's films along with her sisters. king richardserved as Serena and Venus's contract and brand manager.
“She always saves my life,” Venus told The Root about her sister Isha in 2018. “I am grateful to her. I have three older sisters, a younger sister, and my mother. They have been my role models in life.” We are a close-knit family, yours. I was taught that sisters are your best friends. ”
Yetunde was a nurse, hair salon owner and mother of three children. She previously worked as Venus and Serena's personal assistant, and she also competed with them at Wimbledon and the US Open in 1997.
Their brother Chaboita is a film producer
Chaboita, son of Venus and Serena's half-brother Richard, is a film producer. In 2022, he released a documentary about his father titled On the Line: The Story of Richard Williams.
The film screened at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival and won Best Feature Film at the Los Angeles Documentary Film Festival.
Their sister Yetunde was tragically killed in 2003.
Chris Polk/Film Magic
On September 14, 2003, Venus and Serena's sister Yetunde was killed in a drive-by shooting while riding in an SUV with her boyfriend, Roland Wormley, near a suspected drug den in Compton. . At the time, Yetunde was 31 years old and a mother of three children.
According to Serena, the sisters were incredibly close. “Yetunde and I were very close. She changed my diapers,” the athlete told PEOPLE in 2007. “But I was finally able to accept things.”
Three years after Yetunde's death, Robert Maxfield was charged with voluntary manslaughter. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison but was released on parole in 2018.
“No matter what, my sister's good behavior isn't going to bring her back,” Serena told TIME in 2018 after learning Maxfield had been released early. She said: “It's not fair that she doesn't get a chance to hug me.''
She also spoke about whether she was able to forgive Yetunde's killer.
“The Bible talks about forgiveness,” she said. “I'm not there yet.”
They opened a resource center in Yetunde's honor in 2016
In 2016, the family opened the Yetunde Price Resource Center in Compton in memory of their late brother. According to the nonprofit's website, YPRC “connects individuals to existing resources that support healing and co-design community-informed programs. YPRC works with local organizations to We are committed to providing healing-centered, trauma-informed programs to our residents.” ”
“We wanted to honor our sister's memory because she was an amazing sister. She was our eldest daughter and obviously for us,” Selina said of the center, according to the newspaper. Because he was a very important person.” Los Angeles Times. “And for ourselves, and for Venus and her other sisters, Isha and Lindrea, we've wanted to do something in her memory for years, especially in the context of this violent crime. That was very meaningful.” ”
Their family was the subject of an Oscar-nominated movie king richard
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Isha served as executive producer. king richard along with her sisters. Directed by Reynaldo Marcus Green, it was released in theaters on November 19, 2021.
“The complex relationships between siblings often play out in very large ways in real life,” Isha said. hollywood reporter “I can't tell you how many times I've been reminded by people who haven't talked to brothers in years how refreshing it was to see a very loving, yet very real and common relationship, a sisterhood. . The relationship I have with all my sisters, and seeing it on screen, is one of the greatest honors of our lives.”
Actress Mikayla Rashe Bartholomew played the deceased sister in the movie, which touched the whole family.
“I think I cried the whole time. Every time she was in the movie, I was just, personally, just getting started. I mean, not yet,” Serena said. red table talk.
Orasen added, “I think it was a quiet moment because we know how it was and how it happened. You know, it was just… It was just a matter of trying it out, putting it in the back of my mind, and then quitting.'' I do not want to remember. ”
