Tennis legend Serena Williams became the first athlete to win the Fashion Icon award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America on Monday night. Williams told a glittering audience: “I knew when I was a little girl that I was different, so I explored fashion and style as a way to distinguish myself .... In many ways for me, the tennis courts became my runway, and the US Open was my own New York Fashion Week.” Reimagining the traditional tennis outfit became a way, she said, to express “my individuality and my confidence and most importantly, my culture. ”
AP