Shortly after celebrating her first round win at Wimbledon, Venus Williams left her press conference in tears when asked about the recent car accident she was involved in.
Last week it was revealed that the former world No.1 was involved in a traffic accident with another vehicle on June 9th. The collision occurred in Palm Springs, Florida and injured two people. One of those injured, a 78-year-old man, has since died due to injury he suffered in the crash.
Fulfilling her media commitments after defeating Elise Mertens in the first round at SW19, Williams was questioned about the incident. The 37-year-old gave an sombre response.
‘That’s life, you can’t prepare for everything,’ she said. ‘I have no idea what tomorrow will bring. That’s all I can say about it. That’s what I’ve learned.”
Speaking further about the topic, an emotional Williams became overwhelmed about the situation as she broke down in tears.
“There are really no words to describe, like, how devastating and – yeah. I’m completely speechless. It’s just…” Williams explained.
The five-time Wimbledon champion sobbed in silence before exiting the press room to compose herself. She later returned to finish her press briefing a few minutes later.
Venus Williams was asked about events outside of #wimbledon today in her post-match press conference pic.twitter.com/ewnDywOmRy
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) 3 July 2017
Williams is unable to provide details about the accident after it was revealed that the victim’s family is suing her. A police report concluded that she was at fault, but ruled that she was not driving under the influence of anything or was distracted by her mobile phone.
According to court documents, Williams is being sued for unspecified damages. Mrs Barson, the wife of the victim, is seeking compensation for pain and suffering, medical and funeral expenses, loss of earnings and companionship.
Williams will play China’s Wang Qiang in the second round at Wimbledon.
