Serena Williams is back in the game.
After nearly three years away from competitive tennis, the legendary tennis player will return to action in doubles at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club in London. Williams teased the news on X on Monday morning, and Nike confirmed her return shortly after. The tournament will run from June 8th to June 14th.
The 23-time major title winner is the latest celebrity to return to the sport after a long break, but she’s not the first. Some legendary figures have made their own comebacks over the years, while others are enjoying a second wind of impressive careers. Here are some of the other notable names that Williams will be joining.
michael jordan
Arguably the most famous sports comeback of all time, the simple tagline of Jordan’s 1995 comeback, “I’m back,” is still referenced to this day. The Chicago Bulls superstar stayed in baseball for a year after announcing his retirement in October 1993, but returned to the Bulls late in the 1994-95 season.
It didn’t take long for Jordan’s influence to be felt. In his first full season back, the Bulls returned to the NBA Finals and won, and the following year Chicago won two more in a row, making it the third straight championship for the second time in Jordan’s career.
Jordan then retired again, only to come back three years later and play two seasons with the Washington Wizards before officially retiring in 2003.
Mario Lemieux
Part of the inspiration for Jordan’s second comeback was the return of his friend Lemieux a few months earlier.
Lemieux announced his retirement in 1997 with eight All-Star selections and 1,494 career points, even though his 12-season career was interrupted by a diagnosis and subsequent battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1993.
However, Lemieux’s time off the ice was temporary. In one of the most remarkable comebacks in sports history, he returned to the Pittsburgh Penguins in December 2000 and added another 229 points to his career record over six more years in the league.
Martina Hingis
Hingis’ illustrious career has by no means followed a traditional path. ESPN said this on the day of her final retirement in 2017. “Most players’ careers are almost bell-shaped. Hingis’s case is like a page torn from a seismograph on a day of unusual volcanic activity.”
I understood the explanation well. Hingis quickly rose to prominence early in her career, becoming a teenage Grand Slam champion in both singles and doubles competitions. She had a glorious 1997, winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, and achieving the number 1 ranking in the world. However, in 2003, at just 22 years old, Hingis suffered from injuries and announced his retirement.
She returned in 2005, but was suspended again in 2007 and left the game again…then she returned again in 2013, enjoyed some late-career success with impressive doubles performances, and retired (permanently) in 2017.
Simone Biles
During the chaotic period of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan, Biles stepped back from multiple sports to focus on her mental health. This comes ahead of an extended break for the gymnast, who will eventually return in 2023 ahead of the 2024 Paris Games.
Biles certainly shined in the Olympic spotlight in Paris, leaving France with three gold medals and one silver.
michael phelps
Phelps brought home an impressive record at the 2012 London Olympics with four gold medals and two silver medals, adding to his already packed medal cabinet. Then he announced his retirement…but in 2014 he returned.
Unsurprisingly, the legendary swimmer was in top gear by the time Rio 2016, his fifth Olympics, rolled around. Phelps added five gold medals and one silver to his record at the Brazil Games, and capped off his career by helping the United States win its 23rd and final gold medal in the 4×100-meter medley relay, another Olympic record.
lindsay vonn
Vonn already boasted an impressive Olympic career when she decided to retire in 2024 at the age of 40 and chose to try for one more Olympics. She was a three-time medalist and competed in four competitions, but despite repeated injuries and long periods away from competition, she never slowed down. She was selected to Team USA’s roster for the 2026 Olympic Games in Italy.
And while Vonn’s competition ended in heartbreak when she suffered horrific injuries in a fall during the women’s downhill competition, her comeback story may not be over yet—in early May, she was named to next season’s U.S. Alpine Ski Team.
george foreman
There was a considerable gap between Foreman’s boxing career – he first stepped away from the ring at the age of 28, returned 10 years later and continued to do well.
Seven years after starting his second career, Foreman finally becomes the oldest man to hold the title of World Heavyweight Champion. He was 45 years and 299 days old when he achieved the feat by knocking out Michael Moorer.
Foreman’s illustrious career did not ultimately end until he was 48 years old.
Dara Torres
Another multiple comeback master, Torres’ five Olympic appearances were anything but simple.
Her first three competitions were simple. He made his debut in 1984 and qualified in consecutive years in 1988 and 1992. A seven-year hiatus followed, from which Torres returned to compete in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, winning five medals in swimming.
Then there was another break. But after another remarkable comeback, Torres, then 41, won three more medals at the 2008 Beijing Games and then almost qualified for the 2012 Beijing Games.
line sandberg
When Sandberg announced his retirement midway through the 1994 season, he was speechless. “I’m not the type of person to ask the Cubs organization or Chicago Cubs fans for my salary when I’m not happy with my mental approach or performance.”
But Sandberg’s retirement wasn’t the end of his story at Wrigley Field. He returned to Chicago’s roster after a year and a half hiatus for the 1996 season. The break seems to have had a positive effect on the Cubs legend. His 25 home runs in his return to the diamond were his most since 1992, and his 92 RBIs were his most since 1991.
Sandberg would retire permanently at the end of the 1997 season.
