Source: Nike / Nike
Nike is honoring the legacy of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in a historic way.
The shoe giant built a massive one-million-square-foot building at its headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon in honor of Willliams’ iconic tennis career. With four Olympic gold medals and 14 doubles titles underneath her belt, Williams certainly deserves the momentous accolade.
The 40-year-old athlete gushed about the huge honor on Instagram, giving fans a first look at the new campus that includes a 140-seat theater named after her young daughter Olympia, according to Nike’s website.
“There is something to be said about setting goals…” Williams wrote in the caption.
“When I was just a kid I visited the @nike campus and I saw that athletes get buildings! After that visit, I knew I wanted two things; to be a Nike athlete and to have a building. I set my goals high. I knew I would have to be elite, and not only the best, but someone that changes the course of the sport. And now, here we are – officially unveiling the Serena building at the Nike campus,” the star continued.
“Blood sweat and many tears, many trophies – it is beyond an honor and giving me chill bumps. I am so grateful to Nike and the Nike team. Can you believe it? I have a BUILDING Y’ALL!!! This is CRAZY!!!”
The Serena Williams Building will serve as a hub for Nike’s company design, product merchandising and insight teams to collaborate and work. The huge workspace was designed with the tennis player’s star qualities in mind, like the building’s tripartite structure which “is inspired by Serena’s greatness,” the company said in a statement. “It references the goddess Nike’s wings and interprets its namesake’s role as a phenom, warrior, and muse.”
The space also includes 140,000 square feet of showrooms and sprawling workspaces that are filled with inspiring stories of athletes and sports innovators just like Williams. Technology is paramount to the Serena Williams Building as employees will have access to “180-degree wraparound visual projection” tools that will allow Nike teams to visualize data in completely new ways and bring products to life at a new scale.
“The whole building takes your breath away. Every element, everywhere you go, is an opportunity to be inspired. I hope this building encourages people to bring out the best of themselves and to dream bigger than they thought possible,” Williams said in a statement.
Congrats to Serena!
RELATED CONTENT: ‘I Got To Play!’ : Serena Williams Hints At Possible Return To Wimbledon
