With seven Grand Slam singles titles and five Olympic medals to her name, Venus Williams is no stranger to serving aces on the court.<\/p>\n
But when she was tapped to co-chair the Met Gala 2026<\/a> alongside Beyonc\u00e9, Nicole Kidman and Anna Wintour \u2014\u00a0following in the footsteps of sister Serena, who co-hosted in 2019<\/a> \u2014\u00a0the tennis legend couldn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen she became a Met Gala co-chair, I thought we\u2019d won as a family. We were all so happy; it was like we all did it,\u201d Williams, 45, told Page Six Style at Raising Cane\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0after Monday night\u2019s ball.<\/p>\n Venus Williams co-chaired the Met Gala 2026, clad in custom Swarovski. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n After the ball, Venus stopped by Raising Cane\u2019s for a late-night snack. Raising Cane\u2019s<\/p>\n \u201cI never thought that would happen \u2014\u00a0and of course you have to say yes!\u201d the tennis legend told us of being tapped to co-host the ball. courtesy: Raising Cane’s<\/p>\n \u201cSo when I got the call, I was just shocked. I never thought that would happen \u2014\u00a0and of course you have to say yes! I was happy to be there tonight with my husband [actor Andrea Preti<\/a>]. And Serena was there too, so it was a whole family thing.\u201d<\/p>\n For her big Met Gala moment, Venus wore a \u201cquite sparkly\u201d custom Swarovski look based on Robert Pruitt\u2019s\u00a0\u201cVenus Williams, Double Portrait,\u201d<\/a> her 2022 artwork commissioned by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery.<\/p>\n \u201cAll the inspiration came from art, which is the theme of the Met<\/a>,\u201d she told us.<\/p>\n Venus\u2019 bespoke outfit was based on Robert Pruitt\u2019s\u00a0\u201cVenus Williams, Double Portrait,\u201d her 2022 artwork commissioned by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Kevin Mazur\/Getty Images for The Met Museum\/Vogue<\/p>\n It included a sparkling re-creation of the necklace Venus wears in the portrait, which was inspired by the Wimbledon plate. Getty Images<\/p>\n Experience the Met Gala through the eyes of the front row \u2014 follow Page Six on Instagram<\/a> to see every red carpet detail thanks to Ray-Ban Meta glasses<\/a>, then shop the look<\/a> to start filming your own POV.<\/p>\n The outfit\u2019s pi\u00e8ce de r\u00e9sistance? A re-creation of the necklace Venus wears in the portrait, which was inspired by the intricate silver plate awarded to Wimbledon champions.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s called the Venus Rosewater Dish, go figure,\u201d said Venus, a five-time winner of the trophy.<\/p>\n Styled by Ronald Burton III, the athlete completed her look for the evening with glowing makeup by Karina Milan, an embellished braided updo by Jawara and a crystal-encrusted manicure by Gina Edwards.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t