Venus Williams<\/a> is a soon-to-be bride. <\/p>\n The 45-year-old tennis star<\/a> confirmed her engagement to actor Andrea Preti during an interview Tuesday after her first tennis singles match in a year. During the post-game conversation, Rennae Stubbs called Williams a \u201cnewly engaged woman,\u201d and the athlete smiled in response. <\/p>\n \u201cYes, my fianc\u00e9 is here,\u201d she said<\/a>, prompting applause from the crowd. She then described how Preti, with whom she had been romantically linked for a year, has made a difference in her life. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd he really encouraged me to keep playing,\u201d Williams continued. \u201cThere were so many times where I just wanted to coast and kind of chill.\u201d<\/p>\n The Grand Slam champion then acknowledged how difficult it can be to play tennis, given the immense training she has to do. <\/p>\n \u201cYou guys don\u2019t know how much work goes into this, like it\u2019s a nine to five except you\u2019re running the whole time. Lifting weights and just like dying, and then you repeat it the next time,\u201d she quipped. <\/p>\n She added about her fianc\u00e9: \u201cSo he encouraged me to get through this, and it\u2019s wonderful to be here. He\u2019s never seen me play.\u201d<\/p>\n During a match-up at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C. Tuesday night, Williams beat Peyton Stearns by a 6-3, 6-4 score.<\/a> She then became the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match in professional tennis. This was also the first singles match Williams has won since 2023. <\/p>\n Off the court, Williams and Preti were first romantically linked in July 2024, after they were spotted on a boat in Nerano, Italy, along the Amalfi Coast. <\/p>\n While the pair has kept their relationship out of the spotlight, they were rumored to be engaged in February. At the time, photos obtained by People<\/a> showed Williams wearing a sparkling diamond ring on her left hand during a tennis practice session. <\/p>\n Fuel was added to the fire later that month when Preti and Williams attended a show during Milan Fashion Week, with the tennis star once again wearing a diamond ring on her left ring finger. <\/p>\n Williams\u2019 recent tennis win came weeks after she revealed her struggle with a medical condition that left her with debilitating symptoms<\/a>. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/venus-williams-andrea-preti.jpeg\")
(Getty Images)<\/p>\n