New smalls please! Venus makes officials see hot pink
Five-time Wimbledon winner changes out of vivid underwear during break in her match
VENUS WILLIAMS’S choice of a vivid pink bra at Wimbledon yesterday prompted controversy in what was an apparent breach of the championship’s strict “all white” rule.
Williams, who has won the women’s singles title five times, changed out of the bra during a rain break in her second set against Elise Mertens, prompting speculation that officials had spoken to her about its bright colour.
Before changing her outfit, the bra’s bright pink straps had been clearly visible to spectators and officials.
This appeared to be in contravention of the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s (AELTC’S) strict rules requiring players to wear an all-white outfit, in particular the section which states that “any undergarments that either are or can be visible during play (including due to perspiration) must also be completely white except for a single trim of colour no wider than one centimetre (10mm)”.
When play resumed following the rain break Miss Williams was wearing a different top to the one she had on earlier, and this time no bra straps were visible. She went on to win the match against the Belgian 7-6, 6-4.
Asked in the postmatch press conference whether officials had spoken to her about the colour of her bra, Venus said: “Yeah, so I don’t want to talk about undergarments. It’s kind of awkward for me. I’ll leave that to you. You can talk about it with your friends. I’m going to pass.”
The AELTC refused to confirm whether match officials had spoken to Miss Williams, prompting her to change her bra, saying it was “a private matter” between the club and the player. But one official in the referee’s office said: “Underwear should be white. Your shirt can have a thin colour trim on your shirts or shorts.”
Two years ago Eugenie Bouchard narrowly avoided being reprimanded by the umpire after she flouted the official dress code issued to players. The Canadian appeared to have a black bra strap on show during her first-round defeat against China’s Ying-ying Duan.
‘It’s kind of awkward to me. I’ll leave that to you. You can talk about it with your friends. I’m going to pass’
In 2002 Anna Kournikova was asked by officials to remove her black shorts and made do with her male coach’s baggy sports pants for the rest of her match, having cut off the logo so as not to breach the terms her sponsorship deal. Yesterday Miss Williams became visibly upset when asked about the fatal car crash she was involved in which resulted in the death of a 78-year-old US pensioner last month. She said: “There are really no words to describe how devastating ... I’m completely speechless, I’m just ...”