Serena Williams won the Australian Open while she was pregnant. But, why is it such a shocker?

Women athletes have been playing and winning while pregnant for a long time now.

Sarwat Fatima Sarwat Fatima
अप्रैल 21, 2017
Believe it or not, but racket sports is a valid exercise during pregnancy. Photo Courtesy: Facebook/ SerenaWilliams

Serena Williams is pregnant. Hooray! And we are of course happy for her. In fact, even proud that she played the Australian Open in January, while she was two months into her pregnancy. A tight slap on the faces of misogynist pricks, who think women are the weaker sex.

Though we applaud her for her commitment to sports, it's not really not that big of a deal. Okay, easy with the hate we are bound to get for suggesting something so blasphemous. But, hear us out before you accuse us of undermining her achievement. It might come as a shocker that women continue to play even after getting pregnant, but that's not a very alien concept.

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According to a report published in USA Today, there's no reason at all for women to give up exercise after getting pregnant. Not to mention, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say that racket sports is a valid exercise during pregnancy.

Also, Williams is not the first athlete to compete in sports while pregnant. Many women have done the same, without Twitter going gaga over their show of strength. We bet, you don't even know the stories of half of these women.

For instance, Kerri Walsh, an American beach volleyball player, competed in 2012 London Games while she was five weeks pregnant. Not to mention, she won her third gold medal at the Olympics.

Kerri Walsh is also three-time Olympic gold medalist, and one-time Olympic bronze medalist. Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ KerrileeWalsh Kerri Walsh is also three-time Olympic gold medalist, and one-time Olympic bronze medalist. Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ KerrileeWalsh

Then, there is DeAnne Hemmens, who was also two months pregnant when she canoed for the U.S. Olympic team in the 1996 Games in Atlanta. It's a shame that Twitter didn't exist back then.

Pregnancy has never been able to slow women down. Haven't we seen enough pregnant ladies braving their way through crowd-bustling metros to reach office, only to work till very close to their delivery? Of course there's no denying that sports can be more physically demanding, but then again, when were women the weaker sex anyway.

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There are endless examples of such gutsy women making their mark in the world of sports, while carrying their child in their belly. And while we are at it, how can we overlook the fact that Nur Suryani Mohammed Taibi competed in the 2012 Olympics as a rifle shooter when she was eight months pregnant. Eight months!

This Malaysian athlete is ranked 47th in the world in the 10-meter air rifle event. Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ TortuGardiaz This Malaysian athlete is ranked 47th in the world in the 10-meter air rifle event. Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ TortuGardiaz

She also made record for being the most pregnant Olympic athlete in history.

Interestingly, the trend of pregnant women competing in sports goes way back--1920, to be precise. The same year, Magda Julin, a Swedish figure skater, competed in the 1920 Antwerp Olympics while she was three months pregnant. Julin also won a gold medal in the competition.

To sum it up, we have endless women making their countries proud by playing while pregnant. And they are truly an inspiration.

 

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