“They always say weddings go so fast”: Venus Williams officially marries Andrea Preti in Florida

Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams officially married Italian model Andrea Preti last weekend, capping off a five-day celebration in Florida. The former World No. 1, who had initially celebrated with a ceremony in Italy, held a legal union in the United States surrounded by her family and friends.

The couple’s whirlwind romance began at a chance meeting. "We met at the Gucci show," Williams recalled in a recent interview with Vogue. "I was in Lake Como on a sisters’ trip when I got an invite at the last minute and decided to go on a whim, and Andrea was tired. Neither of us was planning on being there."

Things progressed rapidly for the pair. After meeting around September, they were engaged by January in Tuscany. Williams described the proposal with characteristic enthusiasm: "Andrea and I love to take little trips, and we went to a wonderful place with thermal waters. He asked, ‘Do you want to hear my wish?’ I said, ‘Yes, great!’ And when I turned around, he had the ring in his pocket. He said, ‘Do you want to marry me?’ And I couldn’t stop jumping up and down and laughing and smiling because that’s what I do when I win big matches. I was thinking to myself, 'Yes, yes, yes!'"

The couple held their first wedding on September 18 in Ischia, Italy. "We had this dream to do our wedding in Italy," Williams explained. "But we didn’t have enough time to do the paperwork—because I’m a foreigner, it can take about eight months. So we decided to have a second wedding."

That second celebration took place in Palm Beach, honoring Williams' Florida roots. "They always say weddings go so fast, and they do," Williams said. "We started on Monday. Serena gave us this gift of a beautiful yacht, and she arranged all the food, everything. We had 10 to 12 of our closest family and friends who were in town on the boat, and we were singing, dancing, gossiping, and just enjoying each other."

While her personal life has taken center stage, the 45-year-old American has made it clear she is not yet ready to retire from professional tennis. Williams made a notable return to the courts during the North American swing last summer, playing a handful of tournaments and tasting victory once again by upsetting World No. 35 Peyton Stearns in her debut at the DC Open. She also competed in singles and doubles draws at the Cincinnati Open and the US Open, reaching the quarterfinals of the latter alongside Canadian Leylah Fernandez.

Her successful return was one of the high notes of the tennis world during the summer hard court season. Now, looking ahead to the new year, the five-time Wimbledon champion has been announced for the ASB Classic in Auckland. After receiving a wildcard, she will travel to New Zealand for the first week of competition.

Currently ranked No. 581, Williams is gearing up for another season on tour, though she has not yet signaled her schedule beyond January. Speculation is mounting regarding a potential return to the Australian Open, a tournament where she has twice reached the final. However, participation would require a wildcard from the organization. While Tennis Australia has announced many of the wildcards for the men's and women's draws, Williams’ name has not yet appeared.

Fans and pundits alike will have to wait until the last moment to see if the organizers opt to follow the path of the North American tournaments and pay tribute to Venus with an invitation to the year's first Major.