A lot of people ask who is the greatest or the best athlete you’ve ever worked with, and I have problems. Ali, maybe. Jordan, the most charismatic. Shaq, the physically most impressive. Bo was bad. Bolt was fast. Magic, Kareem, Bird, Killy, McEnroe, Bradshaw, Montana, Woods (oops, golf isn’t a sport, it’s a game), Cheryl Miller, Sharapova, Gretzky, Messier, LeBron, Curry, Howard, Griffey, Ditka, Butkus, Joey Porter (the most amazing set of real muscles, ever). An impressive list (and it goes on) but I think that the athlete that impressed me more than any other was Serena.
Her body defied description for female strength. Her skills were extraordinary. I don’t think she has any weaknesses in her ‘game’ and that cannot be said for the majority of other athletes. I was filming her, and during a break I watched her hit and said to her rep that her stroke looked a little odd. The rep said, she’s practicing left-handed. We had to get a male pro to hit with her as the female pro couldn’t get the ball back with proper velocity. Her serve is faster than Jimmy Conners’ was when he was at the top of his game.
Anyway, I think she’s the greatest athlete I worked with.