Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Serena Named AP Female Athlete of the Year


Atleast they got it right this time.

After Roger Federer was robbed by Tiger Woods for AP Athlete of the Year, Serena Williams brought tennis a victory, after the American was named the prestigious honor in the female category by an absolute landslide.

The U.S. newspaper editors that cast their votes clearly overlooked the world number 1's recent US Open tirade, as she won over 66 of the 158 voters. That's more than a third!

The always humble Serena told the AP, "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 triumphed at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in singles, bringing her career Grand Slam tally to 11. With sister Venus, she won the doubles titles at the Aussie and Wimbledon, too, as well as at the US Open, bringing that total to 10. She put the cherry on top of her fantastic 2009 by winning the WTA Year-End Championships and finishing this season with a record-setting $ 6.5 million in prize money.

And about that embarrassing night in New York against Kim Clijsters, Serena has this to say:
"(The outburst) got a lot more people excited about tennis.'' And we'll have to agree, not that we're condoning it, or anything.

The 2nd place finisher was Zanyatta, who had a perfect 14-0 record for her career, and became the 1st female horse to be crowned Breeder's Cup Classic champion. And for a little perspective, she finished 48 votes shy of Serena.

The WTA's Ceo, Stacy Allaster, pretty much said it all: "An incredible performance. Her game just continues to improve through this long career she's had. Serena really peaks for those big moments on big stages"

You can say that again. And as for Williams' plans for next year, "My goal is to have a better year than '09 - and to stay healthy, and I think if I can do that, I'll be fine.''

Be scared, WTA.

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