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A 9-year-old Serena Williams perfectly lays out her ambitions in rediscovered CNN clip

Nine-year-old Serena would be so proud of 40-year-old Serena.

Images Canva via wikicommons

Serena Williams 1991 interview with CNN.

I'm going to take a risk here and assume that, unless you're brand new to this planet, you've heard of Serena Williams. It's almost impossible to believe that there was ever a time that people didn't know who she was, and thanks to this unearthed video, we can see that, even at age 9, the world was starting to know her name. In a 1991 video posted by CNN, 9-year-old Williams is interviewed along with her father, Richard Williams, and she mentions her dream to become No. 1 on the junior tennis circuit.

Little did Williams know, her dreams of being No. 1 would surpass junior tennis and take her on to win so many titles that the tennis star may have to Google herself to be able to name them all. During the interview with CNN, Richard Williams reveals that Serena and her older sister Venus had already been offered multimillion dollar contracts but the family refused to sign—although not for reasons one may think, like wanting more money or being unhappy with working conditions. Richard Williams tells CNN they didn't sign because, "If we accept all of these millions of dollars that people are offering us, we won't have little girls no more. We'll have a business. And they're too young to be a business."

With Williams announcing her retirement before emotionally completing her last matches amid standing ovations and tears from fans, it feels fitting for CNN to pull this out of the vault. Seeing a pint-sized Williams dream big as a little girl in Compton, California, and witnessing her career evolution, this video clip is bound to bring a smile to your face.

Check it out below:

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The 'catsuit' Serena Williams wore to the French Open is mom goals.

Serena Williams has returned — and in spectacular fashion.

For the first time since giving birth to her daughter, the 36-year-old entered Grand Slam play at the 2018 French Open in Paris, dominating Kristyna Pliskova of the Czech Republic in straight sets.

But it was the message behind her uniform that got many fans talking.

Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images.

All-black, with an eye-catching neon stripe wrapped around the middle, the uniform's symbolism resonated far outside the stadium.

"I feel like a warrior in it — like a warrior princess kind of," the tennis star explained. "(A) queen from Wakanda."

Wakanda, of course, is the fictional, mystical African nation home to Marvel's Black Panther. The superhero film tore up the box office earlier this year, earned rave reviews from critics, and inspired a wave of black pride fashion amongst the film's stars and moviegoers.

Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images.

Her "Black Panther" get-up quickly sent Twitter abuzz with the term "catsuit," as Sports Illustrated's Jon Wertheim pointed out in an interview with the athlete shortly after her victory.

"You can't beat a catsuit, right?" Williams said with a smile.

"[This uniform represents] all the moms out there that had a tough pregnancy and had to come back and try to be fierce in the middle of everything."

The uniform's design had a practical use for this fierce new mom too: Its extra-snug fit helped prevent blood clots, according to The Guardian.

And for Williams, that feature is critical.

The tennis champ has been candid about the health challenges she's endured since giving birth.

Her daughter was born via emergency C-section after the baby's heart rate dropped dramatically during contractions, the tennis star wrote for CNN in February. In the following days, a number of health complications — including a pulmonary embolism in Williams' lungs, a large swelling of clotted blood in her abdomen, and a tear in her C-section wound due to intense coughing — made her road to recovery anything but smooth.

"I almost died after giving birth to my daughter, Olympia," Williams wrote, noting how lucky she was to have had quality health care — unlike many new parents in the U.S. and around the world. "I consider myself fortunate."

Williams' story and circumstances are uniquely hers, of course.

Not every new parent is a wealthy, world-renowned athlete with the type of resources and luxuries at their disposal to be winning Grand Slam matches mere months after giving birth.

But Williams — in her marvelous catsuit — still has a message for new parents that's good to keep in mind: You got this.

"For all the moms out there who had a tough recovery from pregnancy — here you go," the star wrote on Twitter, sharing an image of her competing in Paris. "If I can do it, so can you. Love you all!!"

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Serena Williams almost died after giving birth. Here's what she learned.

She was lucky. Many others aren't, but we can fix that.

In a new blog post, tennis superstar Serena Williams opened up about how she almost died after giving birth.

"I almost died after giving birth to my daughter, Olympia," she writes. "Yet I consider myself fortunate."

Williams explains that after giving birth, she had a pulmonary embolism, or blocked arteries in her lungs. This caused her to cough, violently, tearing open the newly-stitched C-section wound. Doctors discovered blood clots in her abdomen, but were able to treat her in time to save her life. It was the type of experience you wouldn't expect of a wealthy world-class athlete like Williams, but her experience speaks to just how common these sorts of complications can be — and just how lucky she is to have survived.

Infant and maternal mortality is an issue that doesn't get talked about nearly enough. Williams wants to change that.

"According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, black women in the United States are over three times more likely to die from pregnancy or childbirth-related causes," she writes. "But this is not just a challenge in the United States. Around the world, thousands of women struggle to give birth in the poorest countries. When they have complications like mine, there are often no drugs, health facilities or doctors to save them. If they don't want to give birth at home, they have to travel great distances at the height of pregnancy. Before they even bring a new life into this world, the cards are already stacked against them."

Williams is right. According to the CDC, black women face a maternal mortality rate of 44 deaths for every 100,000 live births. Compared to the rate for white women (13 deaths per 100,000 births) or women of other races (14 deaths per 100,000 births), the black maternal mortality rate sticks out. A 2017 NPR/Propublica investigation into that disparity found that a number of factors, such as income and unconscious bias, likely play some role but other unknown factors remain.

Infant and child mortality rates remain higher in the U.S. than other wealthy countries, due in part to the country's distinction as one of the only not to guarantee health care to its citizens.

Just how I look at her

A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) on

There are things we can do to better protect the health of mothers and their newborns around the world, but we need to acknowledge the issue first.

Williams goes on to share the story of a woman named Mary from Malawi. Mary's baby died shortly after birth. Every year, 2,600 babies will die within 24 hours of birth; 2.6 million won't make it through their first month. UNICEF estimates that more than 80% of these early deaths are preventable, so why don't we do more about it?

"We know simple solutions exist, like access to midwives and functional health facilities, along with breastfeeding, skin-to-skin contact, clean water, basic drugs and good nutrition," Williams writes. "Yet we are not doing our part. We are not rising to the challenge to help the women of the world."

"Mary's baby died because there weren't enough doctors or nurses to save him. This is a chronic problem plaguing the most impoverished countries. But what if we lived in a world where there were enough birth attendants? Where there was no shortage of access to health facilities nearby? Where lifesaving drugs and clean water were easily available to all? Where midwives could help and advise mothers after birth? What if we lived in a world where every mother and newborn could receive affordable health care and thrive in life?That world is possible. And we must dare to dream it for every black woman, for every woman in Malawi, and for every mother out there."

Thankfully, both Williams and her daughter are healthy and prepared for bright futures. Let's all do our part to make that a reality for more new moms and their children.

Williams closes her essay by calling on readers to "demand governments, businesses and health care providers do more to save these precious lives" and to support groups like UNICEF in their efforts to reduce infant and maternal mortality around the world.

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A hilarious Shonda sighting, Serena on Vogue, and Oprah crushed it. This week is lit.

This is the ninthedition of "This week in black women," a weekly column dedicated to signal-boosting the black women who make the world spin.

This week, I'm shouting out Vogue's youngest cover model, a much-needed resource to help black women get credit, a warm reception for our future president, a photo series to celebrate, and more.

Remember these women! Pay these women! Encourage these women!

Let's do this.

GIF via The Golden Globes.

"Yes, young queen!": Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr. and her mom, Serena Williams

The adorable first child of Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian, Sr. graced the cover of Vogue magazine with her mother. Just 3 months old during the shoot, she's the youngest cover star in the history of the magazine.

The cover story, however, leaned a bit heavier on new mom Williams and her transition from greatest athlete of all time to greatest athlete of all time/mom. Williams shared the harrowing moments following Olympia's birth when she developed blood clots and had to be her own fierce medical advocate to get the lifesaving care she needed.

When a star of Serena Williams' caliber has to fight for her own life, it's no wonder black women are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy or delivery complications than white women. This is a well-documented, dangerous issue that demands our full attention.

"We've got your back": Cite Black Women

I talk a lot in this space about the need to fairly compensate black women for their time and talent. One way to make sure this happens is to give black women the credit they deserve by accurately citing them as sources in syllabi or research.

The Twitter account @citeblackwomen encourages academics to share the literature and research they're teaching and referencing. Not only does this give black women their shine, it may inspire others to incorporate the content into their syllabi as well. Win-win.

And even if your school days are long-gone, follow the account anyway to bolster your reading list. There's some great stuff on there.

"Speak on it, madame president!": Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey became the first black women to receive the Cecil B. deMille Award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for her contributions to the entertainment industry. Her acceptance speech at the Golden Globes provided a much-needed jolt of inspiration and hope in the media and political landscape starved for both.

Social media jumped on the Winfrey wagon with a chorus of tweets suggesting Oprah run for president in 2020, followed by even more tweets suggesting she's not qualified. (The internet will find a way to ruin everything you love.)

Whether she throws her own hat into the ring or actively supports another candidate, it's great to see people get excited and optimistic about the state of the country again — something that seemed impossible for so long.

What can't black women do?

Photo by Paul Drinkwater/NBCUniversal via Getty Images.

"Go off, sis!" Erin Jackson

Erin Jackson of Ocala, Florida made the U.S. Winter Olympic team in long track speed skating after on ice full-time for just four months. FOUR MONTHS!

“I’ve been an inline speed skater for 15 years,” Jackson told Team USA. “I came out to Salt Lake City for the first time ... in the end of February into March. Then I went back to inline for the summer and came back to Salt Lake in September, so it’s been about four months combined.”

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images.

Final Thought: Shonda Rhimes

And don't forget the barbecue sauce!

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