"This is so sad" Serena Williams loses 14 kilos through weight loss injections - for advertising

Serena Williams has lost 14 kilograms through weight loss injections. However, her weight loss is part of an advertising campaign for a company of which her husband is a board member. She has now been heavily criticized for this.

Serena Williams is a tennis legend. She has won 23 Grand Slam titles - and when she ended her career in 2022, she walked off the court as the "Goat" (the greatest of all time).

For many people, she was a great role model not only because of this, but also because Williams repeatedly fought against beauty standards. She had to take a lot of criticism for her body. She was said to be too big, too muscular, not feminine enough. But she countered again and again.

Now Williams has made it public that she has lost 14 kilograms with the help of weight loss injections. Her new figure has long been a topic of discussion among her 18.2 million followers on Instagram.

"I feel physically and mentally liberated"

After the birth of her second daughter in August 2023, she desperately tried to get back into her old shape, she toldPeople- but to no avail.

"It was crazy, because I'd never trained so hard in my life, eaten so healthily and still never achieved my desired dish." Now she feels great: "I feel really good and healthy. I feel physically and mentally liberated."

She achieved her desired weight with the help of a GLP-1 medication and emphasizes how important transparency is to her. "The dress size I had before wasn't bad. It just wasn't what I wanted," she says.

Part of an advertising campaign

But transparency also means making it clear that this is advertising for the company "Ro" and that Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian is on the company's board of directors. Because let's be honest: her announcement about losing 14 kilograms was not a "spontaneous" confession, but part of a carefully planned advertising campaign - and it is having an effect.

Ro is a telemedicine provider. Patients can receive medical care via a digital platform: from diagnosis and a doctor's prescription to the delivery of medication.

Serena Williams not only talks toPeopleabout her weight loss, but also toVogueandElle. Only "Vogue" correctly mentioned in a subordinate clause that Ohanian is on the board of Ro. Otherwise, this was not mentioned at all.

In Elle, Williams said she took 30,000 steps a day and exercised for up to four hours, but didn't get the results she wanted. So it wasn't that she was taking the weight loss injection because she was too lazy. But this was the missing piece of the puzzle for her.

Williams then appeared on NBC's "Today Show". The 43-year-old explained that she wanted to break the stigma surrounding weight loss medication. She appeared for her TV interview wearing a cap with the inscription "I'm on Ro".

Zach Reitano, CEO of Ro, explained to theWall Street Journalwhy Serena Williams is the ideal advertising figure: "The mere fact that there will be people who say that she doesn't need this drug makes her perfect. Because it challenges the common perception of who can benefit from these drugs."

Fierce criticism

The lack of transparency and the fact that even top athletes such as Serena Williams are taking weight loss injections has been heavily criticized. One user writes: "Fantastic, now we can undo all the progress we've made to make women realize after pregnancy that it's okay to take time to recover and get back in shape or not."

Another user wrote: "I am so, so, so disappointed. You've accomplished so much in your life and still felt like you had to be thin to be whole? I actually feel sorry for you. And I'm sorry for all the people and little girls who (used to) look to you as a role model."

"What Seren is really telling us here is that it doesn't matter how successful, strong or powerful you are - if you're not thin, none of that matters. That's so sad," wrote another user.

Actress and presenter Jameela Jamil wrote on Instagram about the side effects that weight loss injections could bring. Celebrities like Williams could afford doctors to monitor their weight loss. "I feel sexier, I feel more confident," says Williams.