‘Tennis Is Actually the Closest’ – Alexis Ohanian Proudly Credits Wife Serena Williams for Pushing Him to Bring Down the Barriers in Women’s Sport

Serena Williams recently signed off and brought the curtains down on one of the greatest tennis careers of all time, winning an astonishing 23 Grand Slam titles. While the GOAT debate is highly contentious, it cannot be denied that Serena surely has brought a lot of viewership and craze for women’s tennis.

Talking about women in sports, Serena Williams’ husband Alexis Ohanian is also one of the top advocates of women in sports. The Reddit cofounder is among the principal investors of Angel City FC and regularly speaks about payment parity.

However, the 39-year-old recently revealed that he was not always very interested in it and credited Serena for bringing the change in him.

Serena Williams made Ohanian like women’s sports

Ohanian was not a big sports enthusiast since childhood. The enterpreneur accepted that he developed it after meeting Séréna and getting an opportunity to witness the sport from close quarters.

“The thing that sparked it. I have front-row seat, obviously to everything Serena has done and continues to do. And actually, that gave me the confidence,” he said.

Read more: ‘Army Trucks Everywhere’- An Emotional Serena Williams Once Recollected the Horrifying Aftermath of the 9/11 Attacks

Ohanian further added, “I looked out, and I saw okay look at the US Open. Thanks to Billie Jean King, Williams sisters, and everything else, tennis is actually the closest to a level playing field. Where the tournaments provide equal pay. Where the news coverage covers both sides equal time.”

Alexis and Serena want their daughter to take up sports

Speaking further in the interview, Ohanian discussed how Olympia has an interest in sports and he would like to see her play on the top stage someday. While Serena echoes similar sentiments, she added a condition to it. According to Alexis Ohanian Serena wants Olympia to take up sports only when she gets paid what she deserves.

While tennis has gradually stepped towards the equal pay rule, the gender pay gap is a reality in sports. Apart from Serena, Martina Navratilova is also one of the biggest advocates of gender pay parity. Earlier this year she called out the organizers of the Italian Open for the huge difference in the prize money for men and women.

Watch this story: Will Smith Shows How King Richard Cast Trained Like Serena and Venus Williams

What do you think about Ohanian’s views on the gender pay gap? Let us know in the comments.