Serena Williams Just Donated Her Tennis Prize Money To Support Australian Bushfire Relief

The sporting legend’s recent win at the ASB Classics marks her first title win in three years

Serena Williams is using the prize money from her first big win since the birth of her daughter, Alexis Olympia, to donate to the Australian relief efforts in light of the country’s devastating wildfire crisis.

On Sunday, the tennis superstar earned a title win at the ASB Classic Match in Auckland, New Zealand, where she beat American Jessica Pegula to win the cash prize of $43,000 – the equivalent of around Dhs160,000.

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A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) on Jan 12, 2020 at 6:59am PST

Commenting on her donation, Williams said: “I’ve been playing Australia for over 20 years and it’s been really hard for me to watch all the news and everything that’s been happening in Australia with all the fires and over a billion animals and people who have lost their homes.”

“So I decided that I would donate all my prize money for a great cause.”

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I am heartbroken over the devastation of the wildfires in Australia. With the loss of over 500 million animals and many people left without their homes, we need to act now to help in whatever way we can. I have been going to Australia for over 20 years so this devastation is hitting me particularly hard. Here’s how we all can help: donate what you can and support organizations like @world_wildlife @wireswildliferescue @nswrfs @cfavic who are doing everything they can to provide resources to rehabilitate Australia’s wildlife. Photos via @kararosenlund and @wwf

A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) on Jan 9, 2020 at 6:01am PST

Williams is the latest prominent figure to have taken action in support of Australia’s relief efforts. Most recently, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle urged their fans in an emotional plea on social media to help donate to the various charities available.

Fashion power-house Balenciaga has also recently launched a capsule koala collection, with 100 percent of sales proceedings being donated to the relief efforts.