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Venus and Serena give back to their childhood community

COMPTON (California) — Venus and Serena Williams made a rare visit to their childhood hometown, where their half-sister was killed in 2003, to have tennis courts dedicated in their honour on Saturday.

Sister Venus and Serena Williams speak during a dedication ceremony of the Leuders Park tennis courts on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, in Compton, California. The courts were dedicated in their name. Photo: AP

Sister Venus and Serena Williams speak during a dedication ceremony of the Leuders Park tennis courts on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, in Compton, California. The courts were dedicated in their name. Photo: AP

COMPTON (California) — Venus and Serena Williams made a rare visit to their childhood hometown, where their half-sister was killed in 2003, to have tennis courts dedicated in their honour on Saturday.

The sisters were greeted by cheers from a few hundred people when they arrived at Lueders Park, not far from their former home in the violence-plagued city of Compton, located south of downtown Los Angeles.

“We literally lived right down the street so we could walk there,” Venus told the crowd.

Banners hung in the four corners of the two newly refurbished courts proclaiming them the Venus & Serena Williams Court of Champions.

“We are really excited to be here,” said Serena. “Driving here brought back so many memories. We definitely want to see some more champions come from these courts.”

Venus added: “It’s been a surreal experience to be back in this way.

“To have the tennis court refurbished, to make sure that there’s coaching available, to make sure that these programmes go on, and to make sure that this sport stays here in our community, it’s a big part of bringing us all up and creating positivity for young people.”

The sisters — who are now based in Florida — laughed and applauded the Compton Sounders drill team and drum squad that performed for them on court.

Babies in strollers, members of a Girl Scout troop and elderly residents were among the crowd sitting in white chairs on the two courts.

Thelma LeBeauf, an 84-year-old fan from Los Angeles, clutched a plastic bag filled with newspaper articles about the sisters, which she has saved over the years. She pulled out a photo from the late 1990s, when the sisters wore colourful beads in their hair.

“At that time, black people, we weren’t into tennis,” said LeBeauf. “I’ve learnt from watching them. I like the style they play.”

The sisters first learnt to play tennis a few kilometres away on courts at East Rancho Dominguez Park, in an unincorporated area surrounding Compton under the tutelage of their father, Richard, who did not attend Saturday’s ceremony.

The previously run-down and little-used courts at Lueders Park are fenced with lighting and now host three tennis camps and clinics, according to Aja Brown, the city’s 34-year-old female Mayor.

“When you consider all the challenges and all the obstacles that the Williams sisters had to overcome and they stayed focused and dedicated, so that same message is being transferred over to the young people in the city,” said Brown. AP

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