Romania's Simona Halep defeated American Serena Williams in the women's finals at Wimbledon on July 13, thwarting Williams' bid to win a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title.
The 27-year-old Halep stunned Williams, 37, in two sets by a score of 6-2, 6-2 to become the first Romanian to win a Wimbledon singles title.
Halep's manager, Virginia Ruzici, won the women's singles final of the French Open in 1978.
Halep made just three unforced errors, compared to 26 by Williams.
Halep is a popular figure in Romania and has appeared on the cover of the country's edition of Elle magazine. She opened a restaurant called SH in her hometown of Constanta on the Black Sea.
"The fact that I am able to win maybe will give inspiration also to Romanians, the kids, that it is possible, even if you come from a little country, it's possible if you work and if you believe," she said.
Halep thanked her mother for inspiring her.
"My mum said when I was 10 that if I want to do something in tennis, I have to play in the final at Wimbledon," she said after her win.
Halep now has $33 million in career earnings.
This year was Williams' second straight year arriving to the final in hopes of tying Margaret Court's record of 24 major singles titles. Last year, Williams lost the final to German Angelique Kerber before going on to lose the final of the U.S. Open to Japan's Naomi Osaka.
"She literally played out of her mind," Williams said of Halep after the match. "Congratulations, Simona.... I mean, whenever a player plays that amazing, you just kind of have to take your hat off and give them a nod of the head."
The win was the second major title for Halep, who won the French Open in 2018.
Switzerland's Roger Federer will meet Serbia's Novak Djokovic in the men's Wimbledon final on July 14.
