"I lost my sh*t" - Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian reveals 'heartbreaking' memory tied to his mother's cancer diagnosis

Serena Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, opened up about an unforgettable sports memory that linked to his mother's cancer diagnosis. He lost his mother, Anke, in 2008, due to an untreatable, cancerous brain tumor, Glioblastoma.

Ohanian shared a video on X where he narrated a "sports memory" that he will "never forget." The American talked about the situation he was in during Washignton Redskins' (now known as Commanders) NFL match against the Dallas Cowboys.

He revealed that this was during the early days of Reddit, in 2005, when the company was founded by him and his friends. He had recently learned about his mother's terminal disease and was undergoing a difficult phase in life. In a video shared on X, he said:

"I'll never forget it. It was when my mom got diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. And then we had a football game that night to try to distract us, to be this, like, escape. And it was a big deal because it's, you know, D.C. versus the Cowboys, and I'm at a bar in Boston, you know, building Reddit," Serena Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, said.

Ohanian talked about how you lose yourself watching sports and he was hoping for a similar time when he was watching the Redskins vs the Cowboys.

"I couldn't fully, but I tried my best to just set aside everything that I know was happening back home with my mom and that terminal diagnosis," he said.

His beloved Redskins were 13-0 down in the fourth quarter, but remarkably they were 14-13 up soon after.

"We're up, we're up by a point, but as a DC football fan, not to get your hopes up too high, because you know you're gonna get heartbroken. I'm in. I'm all in and I'm loud," he added.

Washington, however, held on and won the match by a whisker.

"I mean, I screamed, I flipped out. I lost my sh*t in that Boston bar..." Ohanian said.

He reflected on the moment, saying it captured the true power of sport. Even now, just thinking about it still gives him "chills."

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When Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian reflected on his mother's terminal illness in heartwarming exchange with fan

Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian with their daughter Olympia - Source: Getty

Serena Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit and a advocate for women’s sports, has often spoken about the profound impact his late mother, Anke, had on his life.

Among his many investments, Ohanian is a founding investor in Angel City FC, a Los Angeles-based women’s soccer team playing in the NWSL. In June 2023, Ohanian responded to an emotional post on X from a fan who shared a deeply personal story.

The fan revealed that they were originally set to attend an Angel City FC match in North Carolina, but plans were derailed when their mother was hospitalized with pneumonia. It was a critical and frightening moment, they almost lost her.

Thankfully, her condition improved, and the fan was overjoyed to share that they were flying to Washington, D.C., to support Angel City FC in person that weekend.

Ohanian responded:

"Losing my mom was a defining moment of my life and it makes me so happy to hear you're not only getting more time with her, but also choosing to spend it with us."

Ohanian is married to American tennis icon Serena Williams since over seven years. The couple share two daughters, Olympia, 7, and, Adira, 1.