On what date did Serena Williams first become WTA singles world No. 1?

Serena Williams first became WTA singles world No. 1 on 8 July 2002.

She reached the summit after winning the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season. Her rise also created a remarkable family milestone: Serena and Venus Williams became the first sisters to occupy the top two positions in the singles rankings, with Venus No. 1 and Serena No. 2 before Serena moved ahead.

Serena’s first spell at No. 1 lasted 57 weeks. She remained ahead of Venus until 14 April 2003, when Venus fell to No. 3. The sisters’ ranking history is one of the distinctive features of Serena’s career, although Serena ultimately accumulated far more weeks at the top.

The date is sometimes confused with later ranking milestones, including Serena’s return to No. 1 in February 2013 and her eighth ascent in April 2017. Those were later chapters of her career. Her first arrival at No. 1 came in July 2002, at age 20, and began a career total of 319 weeks in the top position.