December 28, 2015 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Photo credit: Sidney Beal III
American Serena Williams’ banner 2015 season continued over the weekend as she was named the Associated Press (AP) Female Athlete of the Year for the fourth time in her career.
The award is voted on by U.S. editors and news directors at AP, and Serena received 50 first-place votes, more than 36 more than soccer player Carli Lloyd, who received 14 first-place votes.
UFC fighters Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm, and college basketball player Breanna Stewart rounded out the rest of the top five.
Serena went 53-3 in 2015, winning three Grand Slam titles and falling just short of the fourth at the U.S. Open. She has now held the number one ranking in the world for the last 150 weeks, and has cleaned up the awards in recent weeks. She also captured the WTA Player of the Year, Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year, and ITF Women’s World Champion.
It is the fourth time she has been honored by the AP for athlete of the year, also earning the award in 2002, 2009 and 2013.
