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Chrys Weedon<\/strong> | Entertainment Editor<\/span><\/p>\n Serena Williams is an American professional tennis player who has won 23 Grand Slam Singles titles and has won a grand slam tournament for three decades in a row. Williams has earned the most prize money to date in the world of tennis; none of that money came from sponsorships or endorsements, either, but only from her winning record. She has won 743 matches as of May 2018, which is the highest number of won matches of any active tennis player (all statistics gathered from sbnation.com). Just google \u201cSerena Williams statistics,\u201d because there\u2019s a lot more where that came from.<\/span><\/p>\n Certain aspects of Williams\u2019 conduct during matches have come under scrutiny by public audiences and news outlets alike, even sparking the creation of a racist comic by Mark Knight. The biggest incident in question is during Williams\u2019 match against Naomi Osaka. After some calls by the referee that Williams viewed as questionable, she argued against them. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou stole a point from me. You\u2019re a thief, too,\u201d said Williams after getting penalized for throwing her racket onto the court. Later in the match, Williams is quoted as commenting: \u201cthis has happened to me too many times.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n I don\u2019t believe that this one outburst can label Williams \u201caggressive\u201d for the rest of her career. As my stint as an athlete, I can relate to Williams\u2019 outrage. Sometimes, when your adrenaline is high and the game is high-stakes, you do things that you probably wouldn\u2019t do when you are off the court. <\/span><\/p>\n Also, I would like to point out that many male athletes have argued questionable calls, saying worse things than Williams, and often they are lauded for \u201csticking up for themselves.\u201d For example, NFL player Richard Sherman is famous for interacting with the referees, arguing penalty calls and getting hyped up about a game \u2014 fans love him for it.<\/span><\/p>\n Williams clearly has a passion for the game of tennis that has undoubtedly been one of the factors contributing to her success. I mean, you don\u2019t become a world-renowned, top-ranking athlete by being lukewarm about your sport.<\/span><\/p>\n Take a look at Michael Phelps, for example. When he locked down a gold medal in the Olympics, he often yells, slaps the water, hugs his fellow American teammates. Of course he does, right? He is a record-setting athlete. Many athletes do it, and rarely do we hear about it, much less hyperfocus on it. Muhammad Ali often celebrated after winning a fight, and although he has faced much discrimination, no one denies that he is one of the greatest boxers of all time. He isn\u2019t labeled aggressive because of his athleticism.<\/span><\/p>\n Yes, maybe Williams shouldn\u2019t have blown up at the referee in her match against Osaka, but she most likely knows that by now. Hindsight is 20\/20, and I\u2019m sure the average person walking down the street doesn\u2019t want to be forever identified by a mistake they\u2019ve made in the past.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSerena Williams, in her more than 20 year career, has completely remade women\u2019s tennis,\u201d remarked Liz Clarke, sports writer for the Washington Post, \u201cshe has changed what a women\u2019s player serves like, what she hits like, she has changed the expectation of what a women\u2019s player dresses like.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n I believe that someone who completely remakes a sport has the right to be excited about how they, literally, changed the way a sport is played. In my opinion, when I watch sports, it\u2019s more enjoyable when I see someone heated, passionate, and excited about what they\u2019re doing. And honestly, I see a little bit of a double standard when people say that Williams is \u201ctoo loud\u201d or \u201coverly aggressive.\u201d Why is it okay to criticize Williams for her behavior, while at the same time put these male athletes on a pedestal for the exact same display?<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Contact the author at cweedon16@wou.edu<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n