A distraught Venus Williams broke down in tears while reporters questioned her about a Florida car crash in which a man died.
Williams, 37, deflected questions about the car crash on June 9 in which a 78-year-old man died until she was overcome with emotion and forced to leave the press conference.
The man’s family has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the Number 10 seed after police alleged the accident was due to the tennis player’s negligence.
“I prepared for a lot of matches, tried to get ready for whatever my opponent will throw at you, but you can’t prepare for everything,” said Williams, when asked about how she was dealing in the aftermath of the crash.
“I have no idea what tomorrow will bring. That’s all I can say about it. That’s what I’ve learned.”
“There are really no words to describe, like, how devastating and … yeah. I’m completely speechless,” she said, visibly shaken.
The American left the room silent for almost two minutes while she tried to compose herself before she was eventually escorted away by an All England Club official.
Williams told investigators that she entered a six-lane intersection on a green light but was forced to stop due to traffic. It was while she was stopped that Jeremy Barson’s wife Linda crashed into the side of Williams’ vehicle.
Police concluded the driver of Williams’ car “is at fault for violating the right of way”.
Linda Barson, 68, was also injured in the crash, suffering “a cracked sternum, shattered right arm, broken wrist, hand and fingers”.
Jerome and Linda Barson.
Williams later returned to the press conference to answer more questions, this time about her 7-6 (7), 6-3 win against Belgium’s Elise Mertens.
Despite lengthy delays due to weather, Williams easily finished the job and is set to match against China’s Qiang Wang in the second round of the tournament.
