Serena Williams, at 44, will shatter myth that women have a 'use by' date | Opinion

Like the returns of Lindsey Vonn , Allyson Felix and so many other women athletes , Williams' announcement that she is returning to competitive tennis at 44 is a reminder to the world that women do not have a "use by" date. We can do whatever we please, whenever we damn well please, and we will no longer be bound by the artificial constraints society tries to impose.

We’re too old. We can’t juggle a demanding career with a family. We need to make way for the next generation.

So long as our bodies cooperate, and advances in medicine make that more and more likely, women can and should continue doing what brings them joy. Especially when they’re the best in the world at it.

Williams stepped away from tennis in 2022, in part because she and husband Alexis Ohanian wanted another child. Daughter Adira was born the following year, and Williams focused on her family and investing in people and ventures who were getting overlooked by traditional sources of funding.

But Williams had also been plagued by joint pain that was bad enough to hamper her training since her first pregnancy. It probably also kept her from winning more Grand Slams.

When she began taking a GLP-1 drug , she realized that not only was she losing weight, the joint pain was disappearing. Much as a partial knee replacement made it possible for Vonn to resume her skiing career, this medical advancement opened the door for Williams to play tennis again.

Maybe Williams will win another Grand Slam — if you think she’s only coming back to play doubles at The Queen’s Club, you don’t know Serena Williams — maybe she won’t. That’s not the point.

The point is Williams still wants to play. And that is reason enough for her, and anyone else, to keep going.