She’s the tennis icon that welcomed her second child in August 2023, and there’s a special meaning behind Serena Williams’ second baby’s name.
William and her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, were engaged in 2016 and welcomed their first child, Alexis Olympia, on September 1, 2017. The couple was married a few months later in New Orleans, with a star-studded guestlist that included Beyoncé, Anna Wintour, Kelly Rowland and Kim Kardashian.
Per sources forThe Daily Mail, the couple’s wedding—held 11 weeks after Williams gave birth to her first child—was themed after the story of Beauty and the Beast. At the reception, guests were seated at tables named after Williams’s 12 grand slam titles, with favors recreating the trophies she received for each win. ’70s R&B group,New Edition, was also on hand to play a five-song set for dancing attendees.
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Guests, who were told to dress in the Beauty and the Beast theme, were also met with the film’s famous song, “Be Our Guest,” as they entered the reception venue. Cellphones were also reportedly banned, withVogueearning rights to exclusive images.
But in the early days, Williams admitted that she actually tried to get rid of her now-husband during their first encounter, per an interview with Drew Barrymore in September 2022. She explained how she was at the Cavalieri Hotel in Rome with a friend when a stranger suddenly invaded her personal space. “This guy shows up and the whole place is empty. And this guy, like really tall, he comes with his computer and he plops down right next to us. And he opens his computer, and he starts typing,” she explained. “And I’m just like, ‘Why?’ I was so angry, I was like, ‘Why is this guyhere?”
Williams and her friend attempted to scareOhanianoff by saying they saw a rat on the floor, but they couldn’t fool him. “Alexis looks and doesn’t flinch. And I’m like, ‘You’re not afraid of rats?’ And he’s like, ‘Um no, I’m from Brooklyn. But is there even really a rat there?’ I guess he always knew I was full of stuff,” Williams joked. The rest, as they say, is history.
Serena Williams’ second baby’s name
Serena Williams’ second baby’s name is Adira River Ohanian, revealed on Instagram in the birth announcement by the proud father-of-two.
“Welcome, Adira River Ohanian,” he captioned the photo. “I’m grateful to report our house is teaming [sic] with love: a happy & healthy newborn girl and happy & healthy mama. Feeling grateful. @serenawilliams you’ve now given me another incomparable gift — you’re the GMOAT,” he wrote. “Thanks to all the amazing medical staff who took care of my wife & our daughter 🙏 I’ll never forget the moment I introduced @olympiaohanian to her baby sister.” He signed off with a Bible verse, Isiah 48:18: “Your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.”
Adira—pronounced “ah-deer-ah” is traditionally a Hebrew name meaning “strong”, “noble”, and “powerful”. According to The Bump, the name “began as the feminine form of the Biblical name Adir, which was a name used sparingly to refer to God.”
After giving birth to her first daughter in September 2018, the sports champion felt a pressure to bounce back to her pre-baby body and slim down her figure post-birth. So she resorted to waist trainers, a choice she later regretted.
In an interview withTIME, Williams opened up about the pressure of looking thin so soon after her birth. To give off the illusion that her post-baby body was thinner than it was, Williams wore waist trainers in her Instagrams, which pushed her stomach in. In hindsight, she regrets using them, as she also contributed to society’s post-baby-body-image pressures. “I hated that I fell victim to that,” Williams said. “It puts a lot of pressure on women, young and old.”
Body image wasn’t the only issue Williams struggled with. As a new mom, the retired tennis player also fought against discrimination in the workplace after she was treated differently by the tennis industry when she returned from her maternity leave.“It would be nice to recognize that women shouldn’t be treated differently because they take time to bring life into this world,” Williams said.
With regards to parenting role models, Williams said in 2017 at theBlogHer17Conference she looked up to her mother Oracene for advice and guidance. “My mom has always been so strong for me. She’s been the woman that is literally unbreakable,” she said. “When you’re young and you’re growing up you think you’re parents were strict. Then you’re older and you ask if they could have been stricter and you really start to appreciate that. When you start a family yourself, it opens up a lot of things in your mind.”
“I feel like all those lessons she taught me of being so strong, proud of who I am, being able to look anyone in the face and have confidence and speak with so much confidence is something I really have been able to embrace and I’d love to teach my child that,” she said.
Serena toldPeoplein 2020 that she’s the “most boring spender,” but if she does splurge, it’s on her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. “I don’t spend money—when I do it’s on my daughter. I usually invest my funds. I am the most boring spending ever,” she said. “Don’t spend it, invest it.”
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