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Celebrity

29th Aug 2018

The little-known reason why Serena Williams won’t celebrate her daughter’s birthday

Keeley Ryan

Serena Williams’ daughter, Alexis Olympia, turns 1 year old in just a few days – but there won’t be any luxurious birthday party photos popping up on Instagram.

The 36-year-old, who regularly shares photos of her family life on social media, confirmed that they won’t be celebrating the infant’s special day.

The tennis legend was asked about how she was planning to mark her daughter’s birthday during a press conference at the US Open.

According to The Sunshe replied:

“[Alexis] Olympia doesn’t celebrate birthdays. We’re Jehovah’s Witnesses, so we don’t do that.”

They are always staring at me ?

A post shared by Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr. (@olympiaohanian) on

Jehovah’s Witnesses do not celebrate religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter.

They also do not observe birthdays or national holidays, as they feel several of these “festivals” have pagan origins.

Serena Williams tied the knot with Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian last November, in a beautiful ceremony at the New Orleans’ Contemporary Arts Center.

In an interview with Vogue last year, she hinted that her husband is also now practicing her belief – despite the fact that he did not come from a religious upbringing.

She said:

“Alexis is basically the guy I’ve always told my friends to look for, since I love to give advice.

“He’s extremely smart but not a know-it-all. He’s curious about what he doesn’t know.

“Being a Jehovah’s Witness is important to me, but I’ve never really practiced it and have been wanting to get into it.

“Alexis didn’t grow up going to any church, but he’s really receptive and even takes the lead. He puts my needs first.”

They welcomed their first child, Alexis Olympia, on September 1, 2017.