Imagine if they could bottle a potion called \u201cJust Serena.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was Serena Williams\u2019 succinct, smiling explanation for how she\u2019d managed \u2014 at nearly 41, and match-rusty \u2014 to defeat the world\u2019s second-ranked player and advance Wednesday to the third round of a U.S. Open that so far, doesn\u2019t feel much like a farewell. \u201cI\u2019m just Serena,\u201d she said to roaring fans.<\/p>\n
Clearly there\u2019s only one Serena. But as superhuman as many found her achievement, some older fans in particular \u2014 middle-aged, or beyond \u2014 said they saw in Williams\u2019 latest run a very human and relatable takeaway, too. Namely the idea that they, also, could perform better and longer than they once thought possible \u2014 through fitness, practice and grit.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes me feel good about what I\u2019m doing still at my age,\u201d said Bess Brodsky Goldstein, 63, a lifelong tennis enthusiast who was attending the Open on Thursday, the day after Williams\u2019 triumph over 26-year-old Anett Kontaveit.<\/p>\n
Yet Goldstein, like any athlete, suffers her share of aches and injuries, like a recent knee issue that set her back a few weeks. Watching Williams, she said, shows ordinary folks that injuries \u2014 or, in Williams\u2019 case, a life-threatening childbirth experience five years ago \u2014 can be overcome. \u201cShe gives you inspiration that you can achieve your best, even in your early 60s,\u201d said Goldstein, who also had high praise for Venus Williams, Serena\u2019s older sister, competing this year at 42.<\/p>\n
Evelyn David was also watching tennis at the Open on Thursday, And she, too, was thinking about the night before.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody is going, \u2018WHOA!\u2019\u201d said David, who smilingly gave her age as \u201colder than my 60s\u201d and is the site director for New York Junior Tennis Learning, which works with children and teens. She cited the physicality of Williams\u2019 play, and the role of fitness in today\u2019s tennis. \u201cThe rigorous training that athletes go through now is different,\u201d David said. \u201cShe\u2019s going, \u2018I\u2019m not falling over. I can get to the ball.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA total inspiration,\u201d David termed Williams\u2019 performance \u2014 and she had some prominent company.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan I put something in perspective here?\u201d former champion and ESPN commentator Chris Evert said during Wednesday\u2019s broadcast. \u201cThis is a 40-year-old mother. It is blowing me away.\u201d<\/p>\n
Evert retired at age 34 in 1989, well before fitness and nutrition were the prominent factors in tennis they are now. They were even less so when pioneering player Billie Jean King, now 78, was in her heyday.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us older ones, it gives us hope and it\u2019s fun,\u201d King said Thursday in an interview about Williams. \u201cPuts a pep in your step. Gives you energy.\u201d She noted how fitness on the tour has changed since the 1960s and 1970s.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t have the information and we didn\u2019t have the money,\u201d King said. \u201cWhen people win a tournament now, they say, \u2018Thank you to my team.\u2019 They\u2019re so lucky to have all those people. We didn\u2019t even have a coach.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jessica Pegula, the No. 8 seed who won Thursday, is at 28 a half-century younger than King. She knows well the difference fitness has made.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a huge part of it,\u201d she said. \u201cAthletes, how they take care of their bodies, sports nutrition, the science behind training and nutrition \u2014 (it) has changed so much.<\/p>\n
“Back in the day, you saw a player drinking a Coke on the sideline or they had a beer after their match. Now … health has been the No. 1 priority, whether it\u2019s physical or mental.\u201d She said she remembered thinking Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Williams were all going to retire, but \u201cthey kept pushing the boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Federer, 41, hasn\u2019t played since Wimbledon last year because of operations to his right knee, but has said he\u2019ll try to play Wimbledon next year, shortly before his 42nd birthday. And Nadal, 36, known for his intense devotion to fitness, has won two Grand Slam titles this year to raise his total to a men\u2019s-record 22. Nobody would be surprised if he won another major. In contrast, Jimmy Connors\u2019 famous run to the 1991 semis of the U.S. Open when he was 39 was considered an event for the history books.<\/p>\n
Of course, fitness is only one building block to greatness \u2014 in any sport. Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons, who like Pegula is 28, noted that even though it\u2019s inspiring to see Williams keep an athletic advantage partly through preparation, \u201cnot everybody is Serena and Venus Williams. Maybe there\u2019s some genes in there that not everybody else is blessed enough to have, but it\u2019s still cool to know that, hey, even though she is genetically gifted, there are some things that she\u2019s done that have helped her in a tremendous way prolong her career.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Michael J. Joyner, who studies human performance at the Mayo Clinic, said Williams shares many traits with other superstar athletes (from baseball\u2019s Ted Williams to golfer Gary Player and star quarterback Tom Brady, 45 and famously un-retired) who have enjoyed long careers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat you see with all of these people is they stay motivated, they\u2019ve avoided catastrophic injury \u2026 or they\u2019ve been able to come back because they\u2019ve recovered,\u201d he said. Also key: They live in \u201cthe modern era of sports medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n
The question, he asked, is can Williams perform at the same level every other day to win a whole tournament? He hopes so.<\/p>\n
Williams fan Jamie Martin, who has worked in physical therapy since 1985 and owns a chain of clinics in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, said she\u2019s seeing many women playing vigorous, competitive sports into middle age and beyond. Some return to their sport, or take up a new one, after years of focusing on work or family.<\/p>\n
Williams\u2019 pursuit of another U.S. Open title at 40 is a reminder that women can not only remain competitive longer, but can compete now for the joy of it, she notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s really enjoying playing,\u201d said Martin, 59. \u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s fun to watch about it now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooklyn teacher Mwezi Pugh says both Williams sisters are great examples of living life on their own terms \u2013 which includes deciding how long they want to play.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are still following their own playbook,\u201d said Pugh, 51. \u201c\u2018Are you ready to retire yet, Serena?\u2019 \u2018I don\u2019t like that word. I would rather say evolution.\u2019 \u2018Are you ready to retire, Venus?\u2019 \u2018Not today.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe older you are, the more you should be able to set up your life in the way you like, and what works best for you,\u201d Pugh said. \u201cThat\u2019s what the sisters are doing, and they are teaching all of us a lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Source: Voice of America\t<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Imagine if they could bottle a potion called \u201cJust Serena.\u201dThat was Serena Williams\u2019 succinct, smiling explanation for how she\u2019d managed \u2014 at nearly 41, and match-rusty \u2014 to defeat the world\u2019s second-ranked player and advance Wednesday to the third rou…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n