Happy 39th Birthday, Venus Williams!

Venus Williams is making her final preparations for Wimbledon at the lead-up event in Birmingham this week, and she begins the week on a high note: Monday is the WTA legend’s 39th birthday.

Williams, who was born on June 17, 1980 in Lynwood, CA, was a star from the beginning. In 1994, she made her professional debut as a 14-year-old in Oakland, CA., winning her first match against world No. 58 Shaun Stafford, 6-3, 6-4, and nearly beating world No. 2 Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in the second round; she led, 6-2, 3-1, but lost, 2-6, 6-3, 6-0.

After playing just a handful of tournaments the next two years, Williams burst into prominence in 1997, working her way into the Top 100 for the first time during the clay-court season. The 17-year-old then hit the big time at her home major, making it all the way to the US Open final as the world No. 66. She fell to top-ranked and 16-year-old Martina Hingis in the youngest Grand Slam final in the Open Era.

Following rises to No. 5 in 1998 and No. 3 in 1999, Williams won her first two Grand Slam titles in 2000, conquering Wimbledon and the US Open. She successfully defended both titles in 2001 and would eventually rack up seven singles majors, winning three more Wimbledon crowns in 2005, 2007 and 2008. On February 25, 2002, Williams became the first African-American player, male or female, to be No. 1.

“Obviously, when you’re on a professional tour, you don’t aspire to be No.3 or No.2. Normally you do your best to become the best,” a 21-year-old Williams said after clinching the top ranking. “At this point, I am the best player in the world, so that’s exciting and it’s going to be mine at least a week.”

In 2019, Williams isn’t that far removed from some of the best tennis of her career, though some will always try to write her off. She reached three of the five biggest finals of the season in 2017, at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and WTA Finals. The now-39-year-old was still in the Top 10 during Wimbledon less than a year ago.

And now, one of the most dangerous grass-court players of all time is hoping to launch an assault back towards the upper echelon of the women’s game, playing a WTA grass-court tournament before Wimbledon for the first time in eight years, and just the second time in the last 20 years. Venus also has little to defend at the All England Club this year—she lost in the third round last year to then-No. 20 Kiki Bertens, who eventually reached the quarterfinals (and is now the world No. 4).

Another deep run at Wimbledon would certainly be a way to begin her 39th year on a high note.