The last year has been huge for Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian.
From celebrating their engagement and welcoming a baby girl to tying the knot in style, the
couple had a 2017 to remember.
The pair met at the Hotel Cavalieri Hilton in Rome, when Ohanian sat down at the table
next to Williams' outside by the pool. Williams and her friends tried to get him to leave
by telling him there was a rat at his table. When it didn't work, they invited him to join
them. Williams had never heard of Reddit before,
and Ohanian had never watched Williams play tennis, but he agreed to come to the match
later that day. He knew so little about the sport that the first photo he shared publicly
of Williams shows her committing a foot fault. When they met, Ohanian had just gotten out
of a five-year relationship with his college sweetheart, microbiologist Sabriya Stukes.
Ohanian and Williams' first official date
took place before the French Open. Williams invited Ohanian to Paris to see her play and
they ended up walking around Paris for six hours before the tournament began.
The pair kept quiet on social media throughout
2015, although Ohanian did attend the US Open in September.
He shared a photo from the match captioned "Come at the queen, you best not miss. #USOpen."
By April 2016, Ohanian knew he wanted to marry
Williams. "I felt like a door had been opened to a person who made me want to be my best
self," Ohanian said. Ohanian soon became a fixture at Williams'
matches, often showing up in the stands to watch her play.
But Williams was still keeping quiet about their relationship, at least on social media.
Ohanian first appeared in one of her photos
(but among a big group of friends) in August 2016. She referred to him as a "nerd" in the
caption. She posted their first photo together in November
2016 when they wore bear-themed outfits to a costume party.
Right after Christmas and just days before
the ball dropped to ring in a new year, Serena had a new ring of her own because Alexis popped
the question! The tennis champ announced that she said yes.
Serena Williams solidified her status as one
of the greatest athletes in all the world by winning her 23rd Grand Slam at the Australian
Open against her sister Venus. Little did the public know, the tennis champ was pregnant
at the time which just makes her super hero status undeniable!
The tennis champ announced that she was adding
another title to her illustrious resume--she's a mama-to-be!
Serena shared a photo of her growing baby bump at the 20 week mark of her pregnancy
and the best part is, she did it completely by accident!
The star told Gayle King later in the month that while she is the queen of the court she
isn't the queen of tech just yet. “Well, actually it was an accident. I was
on vacation just taking some time for myself and I have this thing where I’ve been checking
my status and taking pictures every week to see how far along I’m going,”she said.
“I didn’t tell a lot of people to be quite honest and I’d been saving it. On social
media, you press the wrong button and… Thirty minutes later I missed four calls and I’m
like, ‘That’s weird.’ But it was a good moment. I was only going to wait five or six
more days [to share].”
For the first time, Serena and Alexis stepped
out in the public eye since announcing their engagement--and her pregnancy--at the Met
Gala. Basking in her love and her pregnancy glow on the red carpet, the couple was certainly
a beautiful sight to see. With her baby bump adorned in an emerald Versace gown and dripping
in jewels, the Williams looked like a true goddess and Ohanian didn't look too shabby
either!
Prepping to walk down the aisle, Serena headed
off to Miami with her family and friends to have a bridal shower weekend extravaganza.
With yoga, spa treatments and lounging by the pool on the itinerary, the girls trip
was said to have been full of relaxation and fun for the bride and mom to be.
As Serena took our breath away on the cover
on Vanity Fair, we certainly cried happy tears as she and Alexis retold their love story
with the magazine. We learned eight super cute things about their relationship including
that they met in May 2015 in Rome at the Cavalieri Hotel.
Serena Williams was ready to shake, rattle and roll at her 50's themed baby shower! With
friends like Ciara, La La Anthony, Kelly Rowland and more, the star and her girls rocked vintage
costumes and hairdos complete with props from the era.
To bring in the fall, Serena gave birth to
a beautiful baby girl! The world class athlete and her fiancé welcomed their first child
together —during the week of the US Open— named Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. The bundle
of joy weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces. Serena shared the sweetest video as she welcomed
a little one into the world with behind the scenes moments from her pregancy and her birthing
process. Later in the month as she adjusted to motherhood, the star penned a thank you
letter to her own mom to express her appreciation for being a wonderful example. So sweet!
Right before the Thanksgiving holiday, Serena
and Alexis had a lot to be thankful for--they were officially husband and wife! The two
tied the knot in New Orleans in front of an intimate group of family and friends including
Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Ciara, La La Anthony. The ceremony included a Beauty and the Beast
theme, tennis-inspired trophies as wedding favors and a traditional brass band that captured
the spirit of the Big Easy. Members of New Edition —Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie
DeVoe, Johnny Gill and Ralph Tresvant— also performed for the wedding. Guests enjoyed
musical performances, an outdoor cocktail reception, a custom-built carousel and doughnuts
from local favorite District Donuts. Congratulations to the happy couple!