Gallery of Greatness: What Brady, Gretzky, Jordan, Joyner-Kersee, Vergeer and Serena have in common
Williams’ career was filled with iconic moments that recalled those from other elite athletes.
WATCH: Saying goodbye to a legend after her last match
Serena Williams’ tennis resume sparkles brilliantly: an Open era record 23 Grand Slam singles titles; another 14 in women’s doubles alongside her sister Venus; four Olympic gold medals; 319 weeks ranked No. 1. “She’s one of the greatest athletes period—male or female,” said John McEnroe.
So how do other athletic greats compare to Serena? Here are five superstars whose excellence on the playing field rivals Serena’s extraordinary legacy.
1. Jackie Joyner-Kersee: From One Century to the Next
There may be nothing quite as powerful as the vision of a family member. Richard Williams was certain that daughters Venus and Serena would both be tennis champions. Joyner-Kersee had her maternal grandmother, Ollie Mae Johnson, to help push her. And at age 14, she told her brother she intended to go to the Olympics.
“If you want to be successful in anything,” Joyner-Kersee once said, “you must have discipline. You have to set goals and then accomplish them.”
Joyner-Kersee earned a basketball scholarship to UCLA and went on to win six Olympic medals, including golds in the heptathlon and long jump. In 1999, Sports Illustrated named Joyner-Kersee the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.
Serena also had high praise for Joyner-Kersee. Recalling her Olympic memories in People, Serena said, “One was my dad made us watch Jackie Joyner-Kersee. He recorded it back in the day and he always had us watch it, when we were training.”
Esther Vergeer: Persistence Pays Off
Magnificent tennis champion, meet magnificent wheelchair tennis champion. Beginning in 2003, Vergeer won an astounding 470 consecutive matches. Named ITF World Champion for 13 straight years (2000 to 2012), Vergeer held the No. 1 ranking for an incredible 668 weeks and won 44 Grand Slam titles—with a nearly even split in singles (21) and doubles (23).
Paralyzed when she was just 8, Vergeer instantly embodied an attribute Serena has also long demonstrated: persistence.
“I made small steps with everyday things,” Vergeer said in a 2018 article that appeared on the adidas website Gameplan A. “I was so positive about the fact that if I worked hard, I would get better every single day. I believe that approach is what kept me one step ahead of my competitors.
“I always wanted to see what I could improve, whether that was mentally or physically or in materials for my wheelchair. I guess all those small steps kept me in front.”
3. Wayne Gretzky: The Nickname Says It All
He was dubbed “The Great One,” a tribute to this Canadian’s superb hockey skills. Like Serena, Gretzky was tremendously successful at a very young age. Serena won her first Grand Slam singles title at 17; Gretzky won his first of nine Most Valuable Player awards at 19. Like Serena, Gretzky understood exactly what it took to compete successfully and repeatedly, leading his Edmonton Oilers team to four Stanley Cup titles. Serena finished a season ranked No. 1 in the world five times and also excelled in team events including the Olympics and the Billie Jean King Cup (formerly Fed Cup).
Gretzky also helped take hockey to new levels of popularity; Serena has made her own significant mark as a champion and cross-cultural global icon. As she wrote in Vogue this past summer, “Over the years, I hope that people come to think of me as symbolizing something bigger than tennis. I admire Billie Jean because she transcended her sport. I’d like it to be: Serena is this and she’s that and she was a great tennis player and she won those slams.”
4. Michael Jordan: Thriving Under Pressure
When it came to competition, Serena performed best when the lights were brightest. Over a career that spanned more than a quarter-century, no tennis player competed so effectively in one high-stakes event after another. No matter who the opponent or what the situation, Serena was eager to serve with pinpoint accuracy, drive a powerful return, close out an arduous rally—and, almost inevitably, break open a match.
The ability to bring out your best when it mattered most: this was the same attribute that made Jordan basketball’s premier clutch player. Like Serena, his hunger to excel was unsurpassed. Jordan led his Chicago Bulls to six NBA titles—winning the Finals MVP each time. In 1993, after the Bulls had won three straight titles, Jordan spent the next two years playing baseball. Jordan returned to the NBA in 1995 and picked up where he left off, the Bulls earning another three consecutive championships from 1996-1998.
“Never say never,” said Jordan, “because limits, like fears, are an illusion.”
5. Tom Brady: Better with Age
It was once thought that when an athlete turned 30, his or her career would start to wind down. Don’t tell that to the man often considered the greatest quarterback in NFL history. In 2007, at 30, Brady had led the New England Patriots to three Super Bowl titles. Brady’s greatness continued, taking the Patriots to three more Super Bowl triumphs, and won his seventh while with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Serena turned 30 in 2011 and by then had won 13 singles majors—already an historic career. Tennis has had its share of champions who earned big titles after turning 30, but Serena once again created a new standard. Beginning with her victory at Wimbledon in 2012, Serena won ten Slams in less than five years.
In 2015, at 33, Serena won the first three majors and just fell short of a calendar-year Slam when she was upset in the US Open semifinals. She ended the season ranked No. 1 in the world for the third straight year. And in 2017—in the early stages of pregnancy—she won her final major at Australian Open without the loss of a set, saving perhaps her best for last.