Venus Williams has supported efforts by the
WTA to protect young female athletes from abuse at the
US Open Champions of Equality event.
Tennis legend Venus attended the prestigious event held to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the fight for equal prize money at the New York major. This fight was led by Billie Jean King and meant that the US Open was the first of the Grand Slams to offer equal monetary prizes.
King was also in attendance at the anniversary celebration, where attendees discussed several issues, including the future of tennis, equal pay across all tournaments, and the welfare of players.
Venus talks about protecting young female athletes
The 43-year-old was vocal about the measures in place to protect young female players, saying that she was happy to see the WTA taking steps to ensure the safeguarding of their young athletes.
"I think the WTA [is] definitely takes measures, and they're taking even more measures every year. Because the young women, they're so good so young. Very impressionable. They don't know anything about the world. Most of them have just played tennis," she said.
Williams added that she spoke from experience, but was lucky enough to have had protections in place for herself, which is not a luxury that all young female players have had.
"I know what that feels like, but I had protections and I was taught to stick to your values. Not everyone has that opportunity to know who they might be at that young age," she continued, before adding that she was 'excited' for the WTA's steps to counter this issue.
"The WTA is definitely taking steps. I see it all over. I'm excited for that."
Venus is a two-time champion of the US Open. She was eliminated in the opening round of this year's tournament, which she entered as a wild card. She was originally set to face Paula Badosa, but following the Spaniard's withdrawal, Williams played against Belgium's Greet Minnen, who defeated the American 6-1, 6-1.
