Serena Williams, one of the most successful athletes of all time, has spoken out about using weight loss drugs – she says, to lift the “stigma” around using such medication.

Will her outspoken comments instil a new sense of confidence in those using the drugs? And could her honesty quieten the critics?

The 43-year-old tennis star, who broke records and won 23 grand slam titles through her career, was the embodiment of fitness and athletic prowess. But, after having kids, even she, like so many of us, has admitted to struggling to shift those extra pounds.

In the end, Williams told the Today Show on TV in the US, that she had to look at her extra weight as “an opponent”. Despite “training five hours a day” and “running, walking, biking, stair climbing,” she couldn’t pulverise this adversary like she did to her opponents on the tennis court – so in the end, she says, she had no other choice but to “try something different”.

Many of her friends were using GLP-1 – the group of medications which help with weight loss, so she decided to try it.

Williams is adamant that the medication route – she won’t say which brand she is taking – wasn’t easy, and certainly not a shortcut to her losing 31lb (14kg) over the past eight months.

There is scepticism about the timing of the tennis star’s recent transparency – she has just become a spokesperson for Ro, a company which sells GLP-1 brands like Wegovy and Zepbound (known as Mounjaro in the UK) through its weight-loss programme, and her husband is also an investor.

Despite this and the potential side effects of taking the medication, her honesty will hit a nerve for many – she says she is speaking out to take away the shame that so many women feel when it comes to using drugs to help them lose weight.

Caleb Luna, assistant professor of feminist studies at the University of California, says having someone like Serena Williams speaking out is “a breakthrough”.

They say it helps silence the critics of how “weight loss is achieved” who say that “people are taking the easy way out” by using weight loss drugs.

“It gets rid of the stereotype that these drugs are for fat people who are being lazy and incompetent.

“In that respect it’s maybe a good thing.”

But Caleb also says the revelation about her need to resort to using GLP-1 medication is slightly “terrifying” and makes them feel “a little bit sad”. They worry that all it does is belittle hard work and dedication, instead, focussing on appearance and the pressure to look a certain way.

“She has achieved things that so few people, in our time and throughout history have achieved.

“But now it just shows how all those accomplishments can be undermined by body size.

“Scarily, weight loss seems to outshine all those record-breaking achievements.”

Williams’ weight and her looks have been scrutinised throughout her life. The burden, the pressure to fit in with society’s expectations does not diminish no matter how much sporting success an athlete has in their career.

And while she may be the most high profile sports star who openly uses weight loss medication, there are many others in the public eye who have spoken out.

Oprah Winfrey says she uses GLP-1 as a tool, along with exercise and healthy eating, to stop herself “yo-yoing” with her weight.

Actress Whoopi Goldberg says she lost the weight of “two people” after taking the drug, and singer Kelly Clarkson, who says she was “chased” by her “doctor for two years” before she agreed to take it, are among the dozens of stars who have been open about taking the medication.

Williams left the world of tennis behind back in 2022, when she played the final match of her career in the US Open, but she is still a powerhouse of strength and has wanted to reach what she describes as her “healthy weight” since the birth of her second child, Adina.

In her interview with the Today Show, says she felt like her “body was missing something” and she wasn’t able to get down to what she felt comfortable with – despite intense training.

Dr Claire Madigan, a senior research associate in behavioural medicine at the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University, says elite athletes can find it hard to lose weight.

“They are used to consuming a lot of calories and when they leave the sport they can find it difficult – it needs a change in behaviour.”

Dr Madigan said it was good to see that Williams mentioned her weight loss was not just down to the drug – “she did have to focus on the diet and physical activity”.

She added: “It’s great she is talking about how difficult it is to lose weight after having a baby.”

But she wonders if Williams’s message might be lost and even demotivate some women. “The drugs are quite expensive and the average person may think here is an elite athlete, she’s got access to the gym, she’s got time, she has a nutritionist… and she’s had to use GLP-1s”.

Dr Madigan also expressed concern that the potential side effects of taking the drugs – which can include gastrointestinal problems like vomiting and diarrhoea, and in rare cases, gallbladder and kidney problems – may not have been widely discussed in the publicity surrounding Williams’s announcement.

Williams says she did not experience any side effects, and told Women’s Health magazine that she is finally seeing the benefits of all her hard work at the gym.

“My joints are a lot better,” she says, “I just had my check-up, and the doctor said everything – including my blood sugar levels – looked great.”

And, even though, she’s no longer breaking new ground on the tennis courts, she is still smashing her own records, with the help, she says of weight loss drugs. She’s currently training for a half marathon.

“I am running farther than I ever have,” she says proudly.

Additional reporting by Alex Kleiderman

Caspar Veldkamp and other ministers step down after cabinet rejects sanctions against Israel, prompting broader political upheaval.

Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp has resigned after failing to secure cabinet support for additional sanctions against Israel over its military onslaught in Gaza.

Veldkamp, a member of the centre-right New Social Contract party, said on Friday that he could not achieve agreement on “meaningful measures” and had repeatedly faced resistance from colleagues over sanctions already in place.

His efforts included imposing entry bans on far-right Israeli ministers, Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, citing their role in inciting settler violence against Palestinians.

Veldkamp also revoked three export permits for navy ship components, warning of “deteriorating conditions” in Gaza and the “risk of undesirable end use”.

“I also see what is happening on the ground in Gaza, the attack on Gaza City, and what is happening in the West Bank, the building decision for the disputed settlement E1, and East Jerusalem,” Veldkamp told reporters.

His departure leaves the Netherlands without a foreign minister as the European Union navigates security guarantees for Ukraine and continues talks with the United States over tariffs.

Following his resignation, all New Social Contract ministers and state secretaries confirmed their support for Veldkamp and resigned from the caretaker government in solidarity.

Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen, reporting from Berlin on developments in the Netherlands, said Veldkamp was “under increasing pressure from lawmakers in parliament, especially from the opposition who have been requesting stricter sanctions against Israel”.

While Veldkamp had announced travel bans for two Israeli ministers a few weeks ago, Vaessen said the foreign minister was facing growing demands after Israel’s attacks on Gaza City and the “increasing aggression” that the Dutch government “should be doing more”.

“Veldkamp has also been pushing for a suspension of the trade agreement that the EU has with Israel,” Vaessen added, noting that the Dutch foreign minister had “increasingly become frustrated because Germany was blocking that. So there was also this push from the Dutch parliament that the Netherlands shouldn’t wait anymore for any European sanctions but should put sanctions on Israel alone.”

Europe-Israel relations

Despite limited Dutch sanctions on Israel, the country continues to support the supply chain of Israel’s F-35 fighter jet.

Research from the Palestinian Youth Movement shared with Al Jazeera in June shows that ships carrying F-35 components frequently dock at the port of Rotterdam, operated by Danish shipping company Maersk.

The F-35 jets have been used by Israel in air strikes on Gaza, which have left much of the Strip in ruins and contributed to the deaths of more than 62,000 people since October 2023.

Earlier this week, the Netherlands joined 20 other nations in condemning Israel’s approval of a large West Bank settlement expansion, calling it “unacceptable and contrary to international law”.

Meanwhile, Israel’s military attacks on Gaza continue, forcing civilians from Gaza City southwards amid mounting famine. A global hunger monitor confirmed on Friday that residents of Gaza City and surrounding areas are officially facing famine conditions.

No successor to Veldkamp has been announced. The caretaker Dutch government, which has been in place since the collapse of the previous coalition on June 3, is expected to remain until a new coalition is formed following elections in October, a process that could take months.