Tennis superstar Venus Williams, has confirmed that she is engaged to her actor boyfriend, Andrea Preti.
Williams, 45, shared the exciting news after becoming the oldest WTA match-winner since 2004
She won her first tennis match in 16 months after defeating Peyton Stearns – 22 years her junior – in straight sets at the Citi Open in Washington D.C.
Williams defeated Stearns 6-3, 6-4 after her return to competitive action on Monday in the women’s doubles following a 16-month absence from the game. The victory over Stearns was her first singles win since 2023 in Cincinnati.
After her victory, she confirmed to the crowd that she is now engaged to Preti, 37, and credited him as a huge source of motivation on the comeback trail.
‘My fiancé is here and he really encouraged me to keep playing,’ she said to huge cheers and applause.
‘There were so many times where I just wanted to coast and kind of chill. Do you know how hard it is to play tennis? You guys don’t know how much work goes into this, like it’s 9 to 5 except you’re running the whole time.
‘Lifting weights and just like dying and then you repeat it the next day. So he encouraged me to get through this and it’s wonderful to be here. He’s never seen me play.’
Speculation first started that Preti had popped the question when Williams was seen practicing in Italy with a huge ring on her wedding finger in February.
Preti was born in Denmark but moved to Italy as a teenager, according to IMDb.
Next up, Williams has a tough encounter against No. 5 seed Magdalena Frech, a 27-year-old from Poland.
Williams is a seven-time Major winner with five Wimbledon titles to her name as well as two US Open victories.