Serena Williams has responded assertively to a luxury hotel in Paris after she and her children were reportedly denied entry.
Williams has been in Paris since late July, having participated as a torch bearer in the Olympics’ opening ceremony and enjoying the games with her family.
On Monday evening, the tennis icon shared an incident on Twitter that allegedly occurred at the Peninsula hotel in Paris.
“Yikes @peninsulaparis I’ve been denied access to rooftop to eat in a empty restaurant of nicer places…but never with my kids,” she tweeted, attaching a photo of the hotel’s sign. “Always a first,” she concluded.
Supporters quickly rallied behind Williams online.
One Twitter user commented, “How does one get denied when they are Serena Wiliams…lol.”
“Glad you didn’t have to waste money there,” another added.
The Peninsula Paris Twitter account has since responded to Williams’ claims, stating: “Dear Mrs. Williams, Please accept our deepest apologies for the disappointment you encountered tonight.
“Unfortunately, our rooftop bar was indeed fully booked and the only unoccupied tables you saw belonged to our gourmet restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc, which was fully reserved.”
“We have always been honored to welcome you and will always be to welcome you again,” they added.
Williams, who retired from professional tennis following the 2022 U.S. Open, was part of the Olympics’ opening ceremony on July 26, joining multiple athletes.
She participated alongside tennis legend Rafael Nadal, nine-time medallist Carl Lewis, soccer champion Zinedine Zidane, and others.
Williams has remained in Paris for the duration of the games, attending several tennis matches over the past couple of weeks.
The former tennis professional was seen watching Novak Djokovic’s match against Carlos Alcaraz, where Djokovic secured the gold in the men’s singles tournament.
Aside from being regarded as one of the greatest of all time, Williams is also an accomplished Olympian, having won four gold medals during her career.
Her first three medals were achieved with her sister, Venus Williams, in women’s doubles at the Sydney 2000, Beijing 2008, and London 2012 Olympics.
Her fourth medal came in the London games of 2012, where she won gold in women’s singles.