Listen&Learn: Serena Williams

Learn about the famous women’s tennis champion.

Pre-listening vocabulary

• train: to teach someone how to do something
• professional: done as a career
• tournament: an event where athletes compete against each other
• doubles: a category of tennis that is played with two teams of two
• victor: the winner of something
• rank: to organize people by their accomplishments

Listening activity

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Gapfill exercise

Serena Williams is an American player. She was born in 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan. Serena’s father, Richard Williams, trained both her and her sister Venus to play, beginning their when they were only 3 years old. At age 14, Serena Williams began to play tennis professionally. She won the U.S. Open tournament four years later. In 2000, Williams up with her sister for the Olympic Games, and the two won their first gold medals in the doubles category. However, they later played against each other in the of three major tournaments in 2002. Serena came out the victor in all three. That year, she became the highest ranking women’s tennis player in the world. Throughout her , Williams has won 23 major singles titles and 16 major doubles titles.

Comprehension questions

1. Williams was trained by
   a. her sister
   b. her brother
   c. her father
   
2. In 2000, Serena and Venus
   a. began playing professionally
   b. played against each other in the finals of a tournament
   c. won their first Olympic gold medals
   
3. After winning against her sister in 2002, Williams
   a. took a break from tournaments
   b. became the highest ranking women’s tennis player
   c. decided to focus on doubles instead of singles

See answers below

Discussion/essay questions

1. Do you enjoy watching sports? Why or why not?
2. The main purpose of many sports is competition. Why is competition important? Are there downsides to being competitive?

Transcript

Serena Williams is an American tennis player. She was born in 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan. Serena’s father, Richard Williams, trained both her and her sister Venus to play, beginning their lessons when they were only 3 years old. At age 14, Serena Williams began to play tennis professionally. She won the U.S. Open tournament four years later. In 2000, Williams teamed up with her sister for the Olympic Games, and the two won their first gold medals in the doubles category. They later played against each other in the finals of three major tournaments in 2002. Serena came out the victor in all three. That year, she became the highest ranking women’s tennis player in the world. Throughout her career, Williams has won 23 major singles titles and 16 major doubles titles.

Answers to comprehension questions

1c 2c 3b