Tennis icon Venus Williams confirmed that she was engaged to her actor boyfriend Andrea Preti months after she was spotted with a stunning diamond engagement ring during a training session.
The 44-year-old was glowing as she verified the rumors surrounding her relationship with the Italian star in a post-game interview, after her singles match at the DC Open.
Making it official
"You are now an engaged woman. So, how has Andrea helped you in this comeback?" asked the reporter. "You're happy, a smile on your face. I mean, how much has he made a difference in your life?"
"My fiancé is here and he really encouraged me to keep playing," Venus said with a smile on her face.
"There were so many times where I just wanted to coast and kind of chill. Do you know how hard it is to play tennis?" she continued.
"You guys don't know how much work goes into this, like it's 9 to 5 except you're running the whole time. Lifting weights and just like dying, and then you repeat it the next day. So he encouraged me to get through this, and it's wonderful to be here. He's never seen me play."
Venus' admission comes five months after she was seen sporting a diamond engagement ring during a training session in Rome, and over a year after the couple were first spotted together.
They enjoyed a romantic boat ride off the Amalfi Coast in July 2024, sparking dating rumors for the first time. The 44-year-old then sent fans into a frenzy with a series of Bahamian vacation snaps posted to social media that included her beau, whom she called "the best company".
Living single
Andrea is a Danish-born Italian actor and producer, whose film credits include writing, directing and starring in One More Day, the TV series A Professor and the film Temptation.
While it is unclear how the tennis star met her 36-year-old partner, it appears that they are enjoying living in loved-up bliss.
Venus got candid about being fiercely independent as a single woman in an interview with Glamour UK in 2022, before she fell for Andrea.
"I've had a single life for a long time and I think it's really easy to get stuck in a single life and sometimes – at least for me – harder to get out," she said. "It makes you think about yourself and what you want and how to behave."
The champion added that she was leaving herself open to love. "When life changes, you've got to know when to change," she declared. "You can't hold on to either a relationship or the singleness."
Venus shared back in 2021 that she was perfectly happy with her life, and was not in a rush to find a partner.
"I have a lot of friends who don't believe me when I say that I like my life and I don't want to change it for any reason. I'm not desperate, and they don't believe me," she told Cosmopolitan.
"They say things like, 'You're going to miss your window,'" she added. "I'm like, 'Please, relax. You might feel this way, but I don't. I promise you I don't.'"
To learn more about Venus' incredible life, watch below...