The third time is almost the charm as Serena Williams continues her journey to fit into her pre-pregnancy Valentino skirt. This time, the mother of two is much closer than before!
“Ok everyone the jean skirt is baaaaaaackkkkkk. Paris was fun, but I gotta see if I can fit in this skirt yet – saying a little prayer…lol,” the 23-time majors singles champion captioned the video shared on Monday.
In the clip, set to Ginuwine’s “In Those Jeans,” Williams is optimistic as she gives the piece another try after almost six weeks since her last effort.
“It’s been a very hard journey, so thank you for joining me for this,” Williams says as she attempts to wiggle the skirt up. “A hard journey! Now, I haven’t tried it on since last time, so let’s see what happens here. Say our prayers [and] don’t get negative, if it doesn’t work out.”
The skirt makes it up her legs and past her butt, which is a notable difference from previous videos where the skirt never made it past the latter, and even able to be buttoned. However, according to Williams, “We still got a little bit of a problem,” as she is unable to zip the skirt up.
“We’ve made a lot of progress,” the professional athlete proclaims, although she says that she still needs “another couple of weeks” to make the skirt fit perfectly. “I’m not as sad, honestly, I’m not even disappointed. I got it over my butt! I might have to do one more video. Hopefully the next one is the one!”
In January, the 42-year-old tennis champion took to Instagram to try on the skirt for the first time after welcoming her and husband Alexis Ohanian’s second child, Adira, in August 2023.
Showing how the skirt would not go over her butt, Williams quipped, “We got a ways to go. Houston, we have a problem. Palm Beach, we have a problem… I feel like if I go to the gym and get fit, I’ll be able to fit it in a month.”
Williams and Ohanian are also the parents of Alexis Olympia Jr., 6.
In April, the Wyn Beauty founder spoke with ET and shared that she is going to accomplish her goal of fitting into that Valentino skirt — and soon.
“I am working towards my goal. I’m gonna fit that skirt soon,” said the greatest tennis player of all time in reference to a very relatable moment. “No, it’s important just to be honest. And I, literally, don’t consider myself any different from anyone else. I’m going through the same struggles, but I will fit in that skirt!”
In the same vein, Williams shared how she is teaching her daughters the power of positivity in themselves and others.
“For me, it’s super important for them to love who they are and whatever they look like,” she shared at the time. “I also foster that positivity by encouraging them to give others compliments, especially other girls compliments. So if I see a girl in their class, I’m like, ‘Oh, she looks pretty, right?’ She’s like, ‘Yeah, I like her hair.’ I’m like, ‘I like her hair, too.'”
She continued, “So just kind of encouraging that, because it doesn’t matter what they look like. If you can find something positive about them then you’re also going to find something positive about you and then you’re gonna win.”
She echoed similar sentiments when sitting down with ET again in June, to discuss her new docuseries, In the Arena: Serena Williams.
“The journey is coming! I actually have another one that I’m gonna post,” she shared with ET of her goal to fit back into the skirt. “The fun part is when that journey is over, I just got some new pants that I can’t quite fit in.”
In the meantime, Williams is enjoying the chance to look back and reexamine her life and her years in tennis with her ESPN+ docuseries.
The docuseries, helmed by Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story director Gotham Chopra, recently premiered at Tribeca Festival to rave reviews. The show features Williams deconstructing major moments from her career and the impact each win and loss had on her life.
“Relax a little bit more,” she said of what she would tell herself at age 14. “I was so intense on the court and wanted to be perfect at every moment and obviously that’s not possible. So, just take a deep breath and just relax and, you know, I think that would have helped me out a little bit.”
Watch a teaser for In the Arena: Serena Williams in the player below:
The docuseries premieres on ESPN+ on July 10.
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