Serena named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year

World number one female tennis player, Serena Williams has been named Sports Illustrated Sports Person of the Year 2015.

“As I always say, it takes a village it’s not just one person“, she said. “I am beyond honored”, she said, according to Sports Illustrated.

However, some folks are apparently mad that she beat a horse: American Pharoah, the first Triple Crown victor since 1978. The horsey crowd was outraged.

Women’s tennis champion Serena Williams has come under fire for reportedly jumping into a taxi to complete the final leg of her own 5km charity race.

In all, the 34-year-old went 53-3 during 2015 with five titles, including the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon.

She is still considered by many to be the best female tennis player of all time.

After the announcement, Williams posted a photo of the magazine cover on Instagram along with a caption that thanked her entire team. She win the first three slams of the year, and made it all the way to the semis at the U.S. Open with all the pressure in the world on her.

NPR reports that Sports Illustrated gives the award to “the athlete or team whose performance that year embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement”. However, many Twitter users felt disillusioned by Williams’ cover on the annual Sports Illustrated issue magazine and claimed that the athlete’s legs were edited to make them appear thinner.

“She was a terrific candidate in a year of terrific candidates”, he added.

Many on social media were understandably thrilled about Williams’ well-deserved win.

Williams becomes the third woman to have the Sportsperson of the Year award all to herself and the first since Mary Decker won in 1983. Though she was born in MI, her father, Richard Williams, relocated the family to Compton, California.

Williams received the award even though the fan voting greatly favored American Pharoah.