VOA文化艺术2022--小威廉姆斯拿下73个冠军,她还得在家庭和事业间做选择

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Serena Williams’ Choice: Tennis or Family

American tennis player Serena Williams said this week that she is ready to leave the sport and turn her attention to "being a mom."

Williams announced her decision in the magazine Vogue¹ and on her Instagram account. She wrote in Vogue, "There comes a time in life when we have to decide to move in a different direction. That time is always hard when you love something so much. My goodness do I enjoy tennis. But now, the countdown has begun."

Williams noted² on Instagram, "I have to focus on being a mom..."

Williams, who turns 41 next month, suggested that the upcoming U.S. Open championship could be her last tournament.

Williams has won 23 Grand Slam titles in her long career. She won her first Grand Slam 23 years ago, at the 1999 U.S. Open.

Williams won her 23rd Grand Slam at the 2017 Australian Open. No one knew it at the time, but Williams was two months pregnant. She gave birth to her daughter Olympia later that year on September 1.

Williams wrote in Vogue that she wants to grow her family and have a second child. The tennis champion wrote, "I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family. I don't think it's fair. If I were a guy I wouldn't be writing this because I'd be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the physical labor³ of expanding our family."

That feeling is something that many women can relate to. Sherie Randolph is a history professor at Georgia Tech University. She is working on a book about African American mothers. She said, "Society makes women think that they can have everything all at once — be the best hands-on-mom and at the top of the field."

Jo McKinney, who is 57, is a New York advertising⁴ executive. She said, "I got goosebumps as I read Serena's piece because she said what many of us feel and are afraid to voice: It's not fair, and something's got to give."

The choices are even more difficult for women in professional sports, said Lisa Banks. She is an employment lawyer who works on gender⁵ and sports. "You can have it all, but can you have it at the same time and the same level, if you're going through pregnancies⁶? No, you miss some time, you miss training," she said.

Other female sports stars, like American runners Allyson Felix and Alysia Montano, have lost sponsorship money after getting pregnant.

Distance runner Kara Goucher also fought battles over pregnancy⁷ pay. She said, "You see the dad at the Super Bowl holding his kids. The reason he's able to do that ... is because someone else is there taking care of their children. That's not how it is for mothers."

Tennis player Chris Evert won 18 Grand Slam championships in her career. She retired⁸ at age 34 and started a family two years later. "The motherhood/tennis career subject is not one I experienced," she said in an email to the Associated Press. She noted that Williams is a "leader on many important cultural, social and gender issues."

Dearica Hamby is a basketball player with the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Like Williams, Hamby has a 5-year-old daughter. She said Williams has been "an example for a lot of us, especially mothers being able to compete at such a high level."

Hamby said she has talked a lot with other players about choosing between motherhood and professional sports. She said, "It's the reality of the world we live in."

Words in This Story

magazine - n. a weekly or monthly publication that contains stories, photos, etc.

focus - v. to direct attention or effort at something specific

championship - n. an important competition that decides which player is the best

tournament - n. a sports competition

title - n. the position of being the champion

guy - n. informal term for a man

society - n. people in general

goosebump - n. small bumps on the skin that are caused by sudden feeling of excitement

gender - n. a person sense of being such as male or female

1 Vogue   

n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的

参考例句：

• Flowery carpets became the vogue.花卉地毯变成了时髦货。
• Short hair came back into vogue about ten years ago.大约十年前短发又开始流行起来了。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

5 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

6 pregnancies   

怀孕，妊娠( pregnancy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Since the wartime population needed replenishment, pregnancies were a good sign. 最后一桩倒不失为好现象，战时人口正该补充。
• She's had three pregnancies in four years. 她在四年中怀孕叁次。

7 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

8 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。