Serena Williams reveals her father backed out of walking her down the aisle by text message
Serena Williams has revealed that her father sent her a text message backing out of her wedding just an hour before the ceremony began.
The famous athlete decided to walk down the aisle by herself at her New Orleans wedding to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, the father of her baby daughter.
Serena, who is friends with Meghan Markle and is reportedly attending the royal wedding on Saturday, explained what it was like to receive the shock message in her new documentary Being Serena.
Following recent events, Meghan now has to decide who will accompany her down the aisle at her wedding to Prince Harry, after confirming that her father Thomas Markle will not be attending her nuptials.
Royal speculators have suggested that like Serena, Meghan may choose to break protocol and walk down the aisle alone.
Serena’s father and tennis coach since childhood, Richard Williams, sent her a text message one hour before the wedding to say he didn’t feel comfortable giving her away.
“He was in New Orleans, he had a suit, and I know he was really excited,” Serena said in the documentary.
“But then he wrote me and said, ‘Serena, I don’t want you to be mad at me, but I just can’t walk you down the aisle. I’m not myself anymore. I’m just too nervous.’”
Rather than letting anger ruin her day, Serena remained calm and replied to let him know that she was “okay” with his decision.
“Daddy, it’s okay, if you don’t want to come to the wedding at all, that’s okay too,” she wrote.
“I’m not going to be upset with you about it, so I don’t want you to be upset about it.”
Serena said not everyone can understand her reaction, but she knows the struggles her dad has faced.
When Serena and Venus were rising tennis stars, she said many people “didn’t get” her father.
“If he doesn’t want to be up there in front of a lot of people, I completely understand. Look, when we first came on the scene, there were a lot of people who didn’t get him.
“I don’t think a lot of them wanted to get him. I don’t think a lot of them could have anyway. Our family knows what we have,” Serena said.
“We just want each other to be happy. That’s what matters. I don’t think anything could ever change that.”