"I looked up the word racist & saw I didn't have all my facts straight": When Venus Williams' dad Richard retracted bold claim about her US Open rival

Venus Williams once had a controversial scuffle with her opponent Irina Spirlea at the US Open. In the aftermath of the tense incident, Richard Williams made a bold claim about Spirlea only to retract his harsh words upon reflection.

Williams' debut at the New York Major in 1997 was nothing short of extraordinary, as the unseeded 17-year-old produced stellar performances to reach her maiden Grand Slam semifinal. However, the American's campaign saw a moment of controversy when she battled it out against Romanian Irina Spirlea for a spot in the final.

Venus Williams made a strong start to the closely contested battle, winning the opening set 7-6(5). The match then took a dramatic turn during a changeover at 4-3 in the second set, when Spirlea appeared to deliberately bump into the American while walking over to her bench.

While speaking to the press after her 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(7) loss, Irina Spirlea addressed the controversial incident and revealed the reason why she didn't move out of Williams' way. Spirlea later copped a fine for using an expletive when referring to the American.

"I'm not going to move. I mean, she's never trying to turn or whatever. She thinks she's the f**king Venus Williams. She not going to turn. She just went like this. I was like, "I want to see if she's turning." She didn't, so," Spirlea said.

Following the incident, Richards Williams publicly expressed his belief that the bump was racially motivated and called the Romanian "a big tall white turkey." However, in an interview with the New York Times later that year, Venus and Serena Williams' father shared that he had apologized to Irina Spirlea for his harsh comment and recanted the racism claim he had made about her.

"I told her I was sorry for the statements I made; I looked up the word racist in the dictionary and I saw I didn't have all my facts straight. Things were blown way out of proportion," he said.

Richard Williams shed light on his changed perspective shortly before Venus Williams and Irina Spirlea's highly anticipated rematch at the 1997 Advanta Championships of Philadelphia.

"Hitting the ball, not each other" - Venus Williams' father Richard on his prediction for her rematch with Irina Spirlea

Venus Williams with her father Richard - Source: Getty

During the same interview, Richard Williams said that he wasn't expecting a repeat of the controversy when Venus Williams and Irina Spirlea faced off in Philadelphia. Nevertheless, he stated that it would be beneficial for women's tennis if the duo delivered an exciting spectacle like the fight between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, but without any violence.

"They're both intelligent girls; I think they're both going to try their best to win the match and that's it, though I think it wouldn't hurt women's tennis if they made it as exciting as a Holyfield-Tyson fight. But hitting the ball, not each other," he said.

Spirlea avenged her US Open loss to Williams in their clash at the Advanta Championships by claiming a dominant 6-3, 6-2 victory in their first-round encounter. The Romanian went on to beat Maria Vento-Kabchi and Monica Seles before falling short against Lindsay Davenport in the semifinals.

Venus Williams and Irina Spirlea locked horns in two more tour-level encounters, with the American emerging victorious on both occasions to take a 3-1 lead in their head-to-head record.