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Daveyhavok832 t1_iumyt9v wrote

I had no idea she was still competing. I feel like Serena took all of her shine. I remember when Venus was the more dominant of the two but that feels like a lifetime ago.

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wakenbake7 t1_iun4guo wrote

For most people on Reddit it was a lifetime ago

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunao9k wrote

I remember Venus being on Sportscenter, it seemed like every morning, but obviously was not. Serena was almost an afterthought back then. Crazy how Serena became the one to dominate the sport for as long as she did.

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ImperialSympathizer t1_iupyc5x wrote

I still remember reading about Venus in sports illustrated for kids and they mentioned offhand that she had a younger sister who played and my reaction was yeah whatever bet she's a fuckin BUM lol.

All time take from 7 year old me.

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zkareface t1_iunrue0 wrote

Its already a lifetime ago since Serena annouced shes quitting.

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tryanewmonicker t1_iuooyyy wrote

And it speaks volumes of their skill and athleticism to be on top of their game for so long. Might make me feel old, but holy shit these two are STILL amazing.

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wmurch4 t1_iun8z3b wrote

I much prefer Venus to Serena in just about all respects. She exudes class and is such a humble person (it seems).

Too bad her health issues ruined any opportunity of staying on top

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booby_whoamack t1_iuotp7s wrote

This is a weird statement to me. They are sisters. Serena was much more policed for her body and accomplishments which put her in positions her sister was not in. Venus is still very accomplished, but they have led different careers.

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shockingdevelopment t1_iuq7oz3 wrote

Tragic how the media gave her a case of constant terrible sportsmanship and arrogance.

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gitsgrl t1_iuqtzue wrote

I’m a tennis player and have followed their careers since I was in high school and they were teen sensations. The media and WTA definitely gave Serena a harder time than other women with similar outbursts. She’s a big imposing black woman and would get called out a lot more for behavior that other players also do. Whether it was conscious or jot, she was treated differently because of her race.

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assoncouchouch t1_iuoqi57 wrote

I think Serena had to go though wayyy more hurdles on top of just being black. Her muscular physique, big buxom, & booty was also counter to the lengthy style more embraced by the tennis world. To boot, her power serve & surprisingly mobile base court game was also outside the norm. So she was always facing opinions of her.

She did have some confrontations with referees, & maybe some tell all will explain where she was truly coming from- if she felt like the calls against her were unfair, & why. But she’s without question the best woman to ever play, & I feel like she faced much of her obstacles with grace.

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Cloudyarabia t1_iuphdfi wrote

Wayyy more hurdles

Unlike her sister who just has a chronic debilitating illness.

“But she’s a big black woman so it’s hard” marries white billionaire cofounder of Reddit

Think you have a misplaced conception of what it means to encounter adversity, it’s not always skin deep.

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gourmet_panini t1_iupsjp1 wrote

Venus isn’t pressed, so why are you. Having money does not neglect the fact that they have been called “men” and “animals” since childhood.

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Cloudyarabia t1_iuq2f70 wrote

I'm sorry, I have absolutely no idea what you are trying to communicate here.

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gourmet_panini t1_iuq3nar wrote

The OP is correct Serena went through more adversity. Venus doesnt use her illness to claim she had it harder.

Serena married a billionaire because she is the highest paid female athlete ever. Her billionaire status doesn’t take away the fact she faces discrimination based on her body type.

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Cloudyarabia t1_iuqoxlk wrote

I think thats quite presumptuous to suggest that she married a billionaire because she's also rich, similarly, I wouldn't suggest that she married him because he is white nor him her because she's black - it makes no sense for me to do so, even if this may or may not be true, I don't have the information to hand to assert it.

I am absolutely at a loss how you can be so confident in saying things for which you have next to no insight nor evidence for. Astounding.

I would consider reflecting on how you come to your opinions on topics at the margins and more closely consider how your viewpoint may be flawed or diminished. I would expect someone with a tertiary level of education like yourself to be more prudent in your assertions and leave more room for nuance.

As a final thought, 'Who has it tougher' is a very toxic way to view the world, we all have our own struggles, we all have our own tribulations; being called names like 'Animal' or 'Man' as a black young lady is not directly comparable to a severe illness or disability - both can be challenging in different ways, not every difficulty is directly rank-able or comparable, I personally feel that this kind of discourse contributes to the miasma that burdens our societal structures today.

Have a nice day.

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shockingdevelopment t1_iuq7a9x wrote

Grace? Is that how you read her constant insults of colleagues and abysmal sportsmanship?

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[deleted] t1_iunb6tp wrote

[removed]

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PsychicApple t1_iunj2as wrote

Why would you even comment this lmao. Some thoughts don’t need to be expressed

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iuno52h wrote

I think the better question is why can’t people have some forgiveness when I admitted I was wrong/ignorant about something when I was a child?

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TheShishkabob t1_iunogna wrote

Because it was out of fucking no where and off-topic, nobody here knows you or cares about you personally, and most people find others seeking praise as distasteful.

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunpoh2 wrote

Wow, is this your first day on the internet? You don’t know how social media works?

And what part of me saying that I was wrong for why I cared at all about a sport 20 years ago did you misinterpret as me “seeking praise?”

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[deleted] t1_iunu8k8 wrote

[deleted]

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunvnsm wrote

I could see how you might think that if you isolated the one comment where I expressed this (and also acknowledged the flaw in it). But if you start at the beginning of the chain, You can see how not only was that not my intention when commenting on this thread, but you can also see how it got to that.

It’s called dialogue/conversation. It’s where one person says something and then another person says something and it can continue like that for as long or as little as the people involved wish.

I said something about Venus and Serena. Someone else said something about them. And I went on to acknowledge my ignorance.

At no point have I been particularly disparaging or offensive. The internet, and especially Reddit, is full of people admitting to fucked up stuff from their childhood. Most of it is unprompted. If you have a problem with it, it’s your problem, not mine. I suggest you get over it or figure out a way to avoid it in the future because I hate to break it to you, but you’re not going to like/agree with everything you see online.

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[deleted] t1_iunxc1b wrote

[deleted]

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunz1he wrote

There’s some data that supports people like to downvote simply because they see someone has already been downvoted.

Virtually none of them are lending a voice to the conversation, so I have to just assume it’s that.

Those that have lended their voice (e.g. you and maybe only one other) failed to make any valid points.

I was discussing women’s tennis with someone. I admitted to not knowing much about it, only having watched a little 20 years ago, and not having much interest in the sport.

That’s a very natural conversation.

Then a few clowns decided to get on their high horse and attack me for sharing my personal experience about the topic of discussion, in which I make no attempts to justify or excuse bad behavior. Again, the bad behavior of a child.

Now, because I took said clowns ammo away by admitting that my views were wrong at the time, they then attack me for essentially nothing.

Nah. You can miss me with that shit.

I’m using a social media platform that has videos of anal sex and people getting cut in half. Go wage your war elsewhere.

90% of comments in any given thread have absolutely nothing to do with the actual post. Mine, at the very least, was a response to someone else’s prompt. If you can’t see that, you need to work on your reading comprehension. Again, it’s a you problem.

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xsupercorex t1_iuo24ko wrote

I agree with this guy tbh. The people who replied are really the people who had the thoughts that shouldn’t be shared just so rude and condescending for no reason. Sad that he got brigaded so hard for just asserting his viewpoint.

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50LI0NS t1_iuooo9c wrote

I love NBA! Although one time when I was 15 I masturbated over a photo of Kobe Bryant. I’m not gay but was just experimenting. Still love the NBA though

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iuorevj wrote

No shame in that. How would any of us know for sure if we don’t experiment?

I didn’t bang another dude until I was 33 years old. I learned that I liked it just as much as I like banging women.

Thanks for being vulnerable and sharing your story!

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supercleverhandle476 t1_iunr5t6 wrote

I had leftover lasagna today for lunch.

I burned the cheese a bit in the microwave, but the flavors always meld better on the second day with lasagna, ya know? Probably an 8/10 lasagna lunch.

My right nostril is a little stuffed up. Weird how it can be runny and stuffy at the same time.

Alright. Time to head to the bathroom. Probably just #1, but we’ll see.

(Since we’re discussing things no one asked or cares about)

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunub4y wrote

I could see how a complete idiot might come to that conclusion.

But we were talking about women’s tennis. It’s not like a brought it up randomly in an unrelated thread. Nor was it even my opening comment. Simply a reply to a reply.

I’d ask if you could see the huge leap in logic there, but I know the sarcasm would be wasted on you.

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KidFresh71 t1_iunj4e9 wrote

Way do downvote someone for being honest. Seriously, the “holier-than-thou” side of Reddit is pathetic.

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Jak_n_Dax t1_iunnd8n wrote

It can be honest and still be a stupid fucking comment.

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KidFresh71 t1_iunzz0u wrote

Verily, your white knight behavior has saved they day. I'm sure you have never ogled a woman. We can only strive to emulate your paladin like behavior.

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunoeu7 wrote

Yeah, God forbid someone own up for a mistake that they didn’t understand at the time.

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No_Program_Found_950 t1_iunywow wrote

Ok so I’m just a random person coming in late here, but I’ll admit at first I read your massive downvoted comment and had a “wtf does that have to do with anything?” moment, until I checked usernames up the chain and realized you were the parent comment, replying again to someone’s reply to you. So that’s probably what’s happening; rarely do back and forth conversations continue between just two people, it’s just all random people tagging along random related thoughts that build a comment chain.

I think most people read it as the typical tag along comment.

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Daveyhavok832 t1_iunzzjv wrote

Maybe.

Again, I think there’s also just a lot of people that like to pile on downvotes to keep it going.

I never tried to justify it. I know it’s wrong. I’d argue that it’s not that bad a thing, especially 20 years ago when no 13 year old boy was being taught about the things we’re finally coming around to as a culture.

But whatever. Downvotes don’t really bother me.

I just hate the idea of the moral superiority some of these jabronis have when they’re not even understanding how the conversation got there.

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[deleted] t1_iupoaxx wrote

She has chronic illnesses

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ashbyashbyashby t1_iuqb38k wrote

The chronic illness of not being as good at tennis as your little sister

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[deleted] t1_iut1jd2 wrote

Excuse you, she has chronic illnesses which slowed down her career. She was literally number 1. She’s an amazingly talented strong woman who persevered regardless.

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RasixF13 t1_iun4ejw wrote

She's had a great, hall of fame career, but it's probably time. I'm sure dealing with Sjögren syndrome (my aunt has this and deals with terrible joint pain) and having a career that has spanned 28 years takes its toll.

If it weren't for her sister, she probably would have crested double digit Grand Slams, although her head to heads against other greats was kind of spotty.

She's wound down her involvement pretty severely, might as well just enjoy the rest of her life. She seems like someone that would rather go away quietly than deal with all of the fanfare.

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annetteisshort t1_iup9e2s wrote

Seriously. As soon as my Sjogren’s started getting worse I had to stop running and lifting weights, because it would trigger the worst flares that would practically leave me bedridden for weeks. I don’t know how she is still going.

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sentientTroll t1_iuskgp6 wrote

Money probably helps. In dealing with and motivating. But probably still very frustrating and stressing to deal with.

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annetteisshort t1_iusngb1 wrote

Oh I bet. I imagine I’d be much better off with a private chef/dietitian, trainer, access to whatever doctors and medications I need, etc.

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melsywelsy t1_iupiiel wrote

Sjogren’s here! It’s hard enough to hold a regular job with this disease. I’m continually impressed by Venus

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Stalked_Like_Corn t1_iun02oc wrote

Lets hope that at the next Championship, the presenters of the trophies don't go on about her when she wasn't even in the game.

During the US Open it cut to I think it was Billie Jean King when they were talking about Serena and you could read her lips of "This is THEIR moment..." and they cut away quickly.

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4MeThisIsHeaven t1_iuoa3uy wrote

Honestly, very few people care because she extended her career for such a long time. She hasn't won a title in 6 years. The winning years are a distant memory now.

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AceRutherfords t1_iuns8ts wrote

Does Venus still play tennis? I had no idea.

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bigdon802 t1_iuqptbp wrote

They played doubles together in the last US Open.

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iced1777 t1_iun5gsx wrote

I guess you expect it from the type of personality that comes with being an elite athlete, but man it gets old seeing them "retire" four times and have the media lose their shit every time.

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Green94598 t1_iuntdcg wrote

Venus has never once retired or implied she was going to…

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iced1777 t1_iunvr7l wrote

Guess who read the title too quickly, thought it was Serena, and shot from the hip with a sarcastic response?

This guy!

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rjcarr t1_iundyol wrote

Did Venus ever actually retire? Serena didn't even retire, really, she was just like "my tennis career is going to start winding down", and everyone assumed the US Open was her last event.

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bardemgoluti t1_iunzx64 wrote

Talk about a stretch... I didn't read anything that could really point to a retirement.

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RawGrit4Ever t1_iuqn3h6 wrote

She stated years ago she will retire when Serena retires. No speculation

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Pxtbw t1_iuqoica wrote

Loved watching her play, pure athleticism.

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goodlowdee t1_iur8v86 wrote

She’s coming to play disc golf.

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RichBitchRichBitch t1_iuqykg5 wrote

These sisters should have retired MANY MANY YEARS GO

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nuzzlefutzzz t1_iuprjk5 wrote

In the immortal words of Frozen, heard everytime I set foot into my friend’s house with his daughter running circles around the living room: “Let it go, let it go.”

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WutWhoSaidDat t1_iun664t wrote

The only speculation comes from stupid people that don’t recognize she’s pretty much already done.

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shhhpark t1_iunbvn9 wrote

She's about to go Tom Brady

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downtimeredditor t1_iun1bzy wrote

At this point might as well try to make it to 30 years

Unless 28 is some weird jehova number or something

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