Venus Williams accepted a universal card invitation to play singles on DC Open this month, which will be the first game of seven-time Grand Slam champions in more than a year.
Williams turned 45 in June and was listed as “inactive” on the WTA Tour’s website.
She hasn’t participated in the official competition since the 2024 Miami Open.
“DC: The energy, the fans, history is really a bit special,” Williams said in a statement Friday by the organizers of the Hard-Court Championship. “The city always shows so much love to me that I can’t wait to compete there again.”
Williams also plays in the U.S. capital in 2022.
“Her achievements in court have inspired people around the world and have vision on the court,” said Mark Ein, chairman of the Mubadala Citi DC Open. “I know how much it means for our DC fans and community to be able to watch her competition in person this summer.”
Williams will return to the tour through the game in February at Indian Wells, California, and later back and said she won’t.
Williams’ most recent Grand Slam appearance was in 2023, when she quit in the first round at Wimbledon – after sliding in the first set and hurting her right knee and opening up the U.S.
Her five singles championships at the All England Club were in 2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, and 2008, and she also won the 2000 and 2001 U.S. Open Singles Trophys. She also won 14 Grand Slam titles with her sister Serena, and his last match was the 2022 U.S. Open, with a total of 4 Olympic gold medals.
Williams said in 2011 that she was diagnosed with Sjögren syndrome, an autoimmune disease of energy outbreaks that can cause joint pain.
