Venus Williams visits Hamilton through Sacerdote Great Names Speaker Series
By Mia Antonini ’26, News Editor
On April 18, Venus Williams, world-renowned tennis champion, women’s pay activist, investor, interior designer and businesswoman, spoke to the Hamilton College community through the Sacerdote Great Names Speaker Series.
Williams spoke to members of the community through a variety of forums including Associate Professor of Africana Studies Nigel Westmaas’s “Global Race and Sport” course, speaking with various members of Hamilton’s athletic teams, and, the largest, her conversation in the Margaret Bundy Scott Fieldhouse, moderated by Lauren Reynolds ’02, Vice President and Executive Editor of ESPN Digital.
The Fieldhouse event began with an introduction by President Wippman and a video presentation providing a brief overview of Williams’ athletic and personal journeys.
One of Reynold’s first points of inquiry asked about Willliams’ childhood, particularly the role her mother played in her upbringing. “She’s the woman with the values…,” replied Williams, “she’s the grounding force, so without my mom, I don’t think we could have done anything we did in the sport.” She elaborated that in this guiding role, her mother reminded her and her family that ultimately the person you are is based on your values, not your success in the game, which the crowd responded to with great applause.
Reynolds asked Williams how much of a role these values played in her success, to which she responded, “Everything.” She continued by explaining “if you do anything, you’ll get anything. You have to stand for something.” For her family, a belief in a higher power was able to act as a guiding force.
Williams also discussed the role her sisters played while growing up, calling to her sister, Isha Price, in the audience’s first row. “We all develop at different paces, so my sisters were my best friends, because I just didn’t have the social skills yet. I’ve learned a few things since,” she said, with a chuckle.
On her battle to combat pay inequality, Reynolds inquired, beginning with an Op-Ed she had written in 2006, whether it was a cause she had long-planned to focus on, or a call to action in the moment during her time at Wimbledon. “I was there just trying to win Wimbledon…,” she said, before highlighting that though she had lost, she had gained several lessons, and on picking up her prize money, she realized she had not earned the same as her male counterparts. “You’re thrown into a situation where you have no choice but to stand up for something… so for me, it was more or less an opportunity not that I asked for, but it was just there.” She recalled the work of Billie Jean King, who just wanted to play, but was forced to create her own tour, which in itself, she didn’t want to do, but was a necessary step in her desire to play the sport.
Throughout the discussion, her drive, discipline and determination were clear. Reynolds asked Wiliams about building mental strength and supporting mental health, Williams noted how it is an “intentional” process — “it’s like a muscle.” “The tough times are fun…,” she added, noting how there is appreciation to be had for the more difficult aspects of life. “I don’t remember those easy matches, I remember the tough ones. Those were the epic ones,” she said, encouraging people not to “bail out on those tough times.”
She notes how it is truly about, “really appreciating that battle and taking your losses, taking those tough times as learning experiences as a chance to build those muscles… just realize it’s not going to experiences as a chance to build those muscles… Just realize it’s not going to last forever and you’re going to learn from it.” However, when facing serious mental health struggles, she highlighted the importance of reaching out to others for support — “those are serious things that you need to get help with and talk to people about.”
Many questions answered by Williams came from students and other community members. Jack Jee ’24, for example, asked how the tennis star copes with disappointment, to which she replied, “I’m rarely disappointed, to be honest. I think you can only be disappointed if you go out there expecting a lot… I expect to work hard, I expect to fight for what I get… but I don’t expect anything to be given to me… You really aren’t owed anything, even this life that we’re given today, we didn’t do anything to earn it. It was a beautiful gift.”
When asked what is the greatest lesson she has gained from sports, Williams noted how many there are for her to choose from, but ultimately shared how it teaches how “trust and rely on yourself becuase you just have to, and then you find out what happens when you don’t.”
Outside of her tennis ventures, Williams has also acted as an investor, particularly working with Ellevest, a women-centered investment company aimed to support women acquire wealth.
When asked what she prioritized when deciding whether or not to invest in a company, Williams highlighted the importance of the founder and the market that the product aims to address. Also, Williams noted that often investors can have a particular interest or sector, whether minority-owned business, sustainability, or companies that make them excited to be a part of. She shared, “I just invest in things that make me excited… It is a feeling that it gives me. ‘How does it hit me deep inside?’”
Williams also shared her work in supporting girls staying in sports, noting how body image struggles have contributed to this epidemic. “Sports is such a gift to life,” she says, “such a gift to the world, for those who watch, for those who play, and those who learn from it. We need girls to continue playing.”
Liz Keogh ’94 says, “Venus was so poised and interesting — I loved hearing her perspective about hitting the professional tennis circuit with grit and determination never seen before!”
Many students, including Julia Granito ’26, were able to take photographs with Williams through a photo lottery. “Venus was very warm. It seemed like she genuinely wanted to meet all of us,” says Granito.
The Sacerdote Great Names series, made possible by the donations of the Sacerdote Family, has welcomed guests in the past such as Condoleezza and Susan Rice, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Derek Jeter, Hillary Clinton and Tina Fey, among others. Williams’ visit to Hamilton, made possible allowed the campus community to learn from her experiences as a dedicated athlete, entrepreneur and activist. The event also invited local community members to join in on the inspiring evening.
