Tennis champ Serena Williams may like to conquer opponents on the court, but when it comes to real life, the new mom is teaching her 16-month-old daughter, Olympia, all about kindness.
Williams graces the cover of Allure's Body + Mind issue and, inside the magazine, she opens up about how she wants Olympia to understand that the "ultimate beauty" comes from within.
“When I tell her she’s beautiful, I want to teach her that she’s beautiful from the inside. Giving is beauty. Being kind and humble is the ultimate beauty," the 23-time Grand Slam winner shared.
While Williams, 37, wants Olympia — whose dad is Williams' husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian — to treat those around her well, she also hopes she finds the strength to stand up for herself when she needs to.
"I want her to know that being strong is never easy. Not in this world we are living in," said Williams. "Standing up for yourself is not going to be easy, but it’s always eventually respected."
Real strength, said the tennis great, means also fighting for what's right — even when it's difficult to do.
"Those are the people who’ve made a difference in this world, people that stand up for what’s right," she said. "If you look at history, those are the people that you really remember. And at the time, oh, my God, it seemed impossible.”
Little Olympia is already proving how kind-hearted she is —much to her mom's amusement.
Just last month during an exhibit match with her sister Venus, 38, in Abu Dhabi, Williams cracked up when she saw sweet Olympia cheering on both her mom and her aunt.
During a press conference after the match, the proud mom shared how her daughter's sweet applause for both her and Venus touched her heart.
"That's a classy baby, you know, she applauds both Mommy and my opponent who happened to be her auntie," Williams gushed, per Sport360. "That was the highlight, seeing her clap, it was so cute."
Allure's new Body + Mind issue is on newsstands Jan. 22.