Update (3:39 PM EST): It has been confirmed that Serena gave birth to a baby girl.
Update (1:31 PM EST): We are seeing uncomfirmed rumors that Serena has given birth to a baby girl. We will update as we know more.
23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams is currently in labour at St. Mary’s Medical Centre. This has been confirmed by CBS12 reporter Thomas Forester.
Tennis Superstar Serena Williams is waiting at St.Marys Medical Center this hour to give birth to her first child. https://t.co/agveIwUiWI pic.twitter.com/bxdheHA3gI
— Thomas_Forester@tvnews (@ForesterCBS12) September 1, 2017
Williams checked into the hospital on Wednesday 30th August, with the entire 1st floor cleared for herself, to the extent that you need to go through security to access. According to hospital personnel, Williams was induced the night of Thursday, August 31st.
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Serena Williams was revealed she was 20 weeks pregnant on Wednesday, April 19th, through a supposedly accidental Snapchat post. However, there were suspicions about whether this was a deliberate post as it conveniently collided with the 30th birthday of 5-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova, who have not always been on great terms with each other.
Regardless, this meant that she won this year’s Australian Open during the early stages of pregnancy, which is an astonishing feat. The Palm Beach Gardens resident, who is due to turn 36 years old this month, is engaged to 34-year old Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. This will be their first child, who is rumored to be a girl after Serena’s sister, seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams, said she would be “her auntie” in an interview. Serena aims to return to the WTA Tour at the start of 2018 to defend her Australian Open title, where she is projected to be seeded in the No. 17-32 range, meaning she could face a Top 16 seed in the third round.
Williams has publicly said in an interview with the WTA, “Either I win or I don’t play,” so it is clear that she has her sights set on surpassing Margaret Court’s all time Grand Slam tallly of 24 upon her return.
Based on being 20 weeks pregnant in April, we knew that Serena should be due sometime around now. The 23-time Grand Slam champion–and six-time US Open champion–will give birth to her first child as this year’s US Open, the final Grand Slam tournament of the year, is in full swing, with players competing in the third round Friday and Saturday.
Check back here as we will be updating this developing story.
