 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
||||||
 |
Venus inspires fans at Torrance book signing
Torrance Daily Breeze
By Art Marroquin Staff Writer  Lauren Wesseln smiles for a picture with Venus Williams as she signs autographs for her book at Borders Books in Torrance. (Sean Hiller / Staff Photographer) Streams of tears fell from 14-year-old Lauren Wesseln's face after shaking hands Thursday evening with tennis star Venus Williams. Wesseln, wearing a black visor and a blue tennis skirt, trembled as she clutched an autographed copy of Williams' first tome, "Come to Win," during a book signing at Borders bookstore in Torrance. "She's such an inspiration, she's so good, and I want to be just like her," Wesseln, a Yorba Linda resident, said while noting that Williams was only 14 when she played her first professional game. "I've only been playing for a year," Wesseln said. "But it's nice to keep working up because she started young, too." Wesseln was among the scores of fans standing in a long line that snaked out the door and into the parking lot at Borders, excitedly waiting to meet Williams face to face. In the book, Williams serves up more than just backhands. With 21 Grand Slam titles and three Olympic gold medals under her belt, the 30-year-old Compton native encourages readers to play sports as a way to "come to win" in their personal and professional lives. "From the very beginning, I realized people know me as an athlete, but not necessarily outside of that field, so I've worked really hard and I think it paid off," Williams said. She explains how her love for and varied successes in tennis have parlayed into the business world, where she heads an interior design firm, created her own line of athletic clothing and owns a minority stake in the Miami Dolphins football team with her younger sister, Serena. In the book, fashion designer Vera Wang, former Los Angeles Lakers star Earvin "Magic" Johnson, former President Bill Clinton and 50 other prominent business, athletic and political figures also share how sports played a significant role in shaping areas of their lives, while explaining how the reader can follow the same path. Though it took more than a year to  Fans line up to get Venus Williams' autographs at Borders Books in Torrance. (Sean Hiller / Staff Photographer) conduct the interviews, Williams said she hoped the stories would inspire others. "I just wanted to share what I learned in sports and how that transitioned into my regular life and all these extraordinary people had very similar experiences to me," Williams said. "It's just about being great, successful, overcoming obstacles and being a leader in your game." Lashell Diggs grew up near the Compton tennis courts where the Williams sisters trained and said that the tennis pros have inspired her for "a long time." She brought along her 9-year-old daughter, Linda, and waited in line for 90 minutes just to meet Williams. "Venus came from humble beginnings, but she was an extraordinary girl with a strong will and goals, and she made it," said Diggs, who now lives in Carson. "I wanted my daughter to meet a superstar who didn't start off that way." After playing tennis Thursday morning, Leslie Jackson got in her car and drove more than 50 miles from the western San Bernardino County city of Chino Hills to Torrance just to meet Williams. She said the long journey paid off. After waiting nearly three hours, Jackson was the first person in line to get her book signed by Williams. "I started reading some of the book while I was waiting, and she gives some really good advice," Jackson said. "I just admire what Venus has done as a businesswoman and as an athlete." 2 Comments
Posted on Jul 15, 2010
by helon @ Sep 03, 2010 05:32 pm
Welcome to our website: http://clothes6.us to choose the goods you like.
We Offer Wholesale fashion designer Handbags, Coach ,Gucci, lv, juicy, Jimmy ,burberry ,CA ,dg ,db, ed hardy ,Fendi, miumiu,prada ,hermes,bally and etc. All of our handbags are AAA quality,You could find most fashionable and style handbags from here. And we also can supply you women ugg boots, NIKE Jordan shoes, Brand apparel,sunglasses,belts,caps,watches etc. Please fully look through our website to find your interested items We welcome your order and we can be contacted by Email or MSN. Feature: AAA quality, quick shipment, best service. 1) Price: each for nike shoes(Air Jordan, air max, shox ,dunk sb, nike rift,af1,nike blazer) 2) MOQ:6 piece, you can mix to order all of our products 3) Packing: Come with original boxes, Authentic card 4) Payment: Western union, paypal . credit card . 5) Shipment: Delivery by EMS, TNT ,DHL ,UPS ,FedEx ,door to door in 5-7 days We are look forward to establish a mutual trust and long time business with you in the near future sincerely. ======= http://clothes6.us======== |
|||||
| Webmaster: James Alexander III
|
|||||