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Serena Williams: Olympic experience is 'amazing'

Serena Williams of the U.S celebrates a point against Amara Safikovic of Switzerland during their women's singles match on day two of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Tuesday, June 28, 2016. (Ben Curtis/AP)
Serena Williams. (AP)

The relationship between professional players and the Olympics is a fragile, dicey one. Where “amateur” athletes see the Olympics as a pinnacle, pros often see the Olympics as another stop on the schedule at best, an unwanted obligation at worst. LeBron James, Steph Curry, Rory McIlroy, and Jason Day are some of the notable pros who have decided against participating in the Rio Olympic Games, for reasons ranging from exhaustion to Zika virus fears.

Not among their number: Serena Williams, the defending Olympic singles and doubles gold medalist, and a fairly decent player in her non-Olympic life as well. Speaking at Wimbledon on Tuesday, Williams had nothing but praise for the Olympics. “My experience has been really amazing at the Olympics. I really loved going out there and competing…standing out there and being an Olympic athlete,” Williams said. “It is really one of the best experiences that I’ve had.”

Williams won gold at the 2000, 2008 and 2012 Games in doubles, and another gold in 2012 in singles. And while she is enthusiastic about traveling, she understands the concerns of players who aren’t.

“I think it is sad,” she said. “But at the same time I obviously understand where they’re coming from and how they feel. Part of me feels that way, too, which is why I’m going in with a whole mindset of how do I protect myself.”

The mosquito-borne Zika virus has been connected to neurological disorders in both infants and adults, and many players have cited that as a reason for avoiding Rio. On a more mundane level, tennis players have also pointed to their grueling schedule and points structure of the Olympics (players will earn no ranking points from Rio) as reasons for skipping out on the event.

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION, on sale now at Amazon or wherever books are sold. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.