AP Names Serena Female Athlete for 2009

Wednesday, December 23, 2009 -- Serena Williams is one of the top female players in tennis, and by giving her best performance at the most important events, she has been able to re-establish her presence as the top player for 2009 in women’s tennis. Subsequently, she was chosen via a landslide vote by the members of The Associated Press to be named as Female Athlete of the Year for 2009.

Williams had 66 from a total of 158 votes that were cast by editors from the U.S. newspaper that are members of The Associated Press. The tally was announced Tuesday, revealing that no other candidate received more than 18 votes.

Clearly, despite the most publicized court-episode that happened between Williams and a line judge during the U.S. Open, did not affect William’s standing in the eyes of those who voted.

According to Williams, “People realize that I’m a great player, and one moment doesn’t define a person’s career… And I was right, for the most part: It wasn’t right the way I reacted – I never said it was – but I was right about the call.”

Williams also noted that due to her outburst, plus the resulting fine and a two-year probationary period at any Grand Slam tournament, a lot of people are now getting excited about tennis.

According to WTA chairman and CEO Stacey Allaster, a great deal of the strength and growth of women’s tennis can be attributed to Williams. “She is a superstar.”

Seven years ago, Williams also won the same AP award. This has been deemed as the longest gap between awards since the time Patty Berg won her awards in 1943 and 1955.

Williams said that she is just blessed and happy that she is still playing after seven years. “In 2002, I was just really dominant, and I think in 2009, I just brought that back. I kind of became that player again,” Williams added.