Toned: Serena Williams, 37, stuns on the latest Allure magazine cover as she opens up about how she and her sister Venus have been ‘unapologetically’ themselves in tennis

Stunning: In the interview with Allure, Serena said she became her own role model in tennis because of who represented the sport at the time

Throwback: ‘We were not afraid to wear braids,’ Serena told Allure. Pictured is she (left) and Venus (right) at the 1998 US Open. ‘We weren’t afraid to be black in tennis’

Sister, sister: The two women, pictured at the 2018 US Open, found confidence in being themselves from their mother

She and Venus, 38, have since become two of the most recognized faces for the game, which Serena found to be important as they previously had few role models to look up to in tennis.

‘There weren’t a lot of role models for me to look up to [in the sport] and say, ‘Wow, I want to look like this,” Serena said. ‘I kind of had to be that role and be that person.’

The confidence both Serena and Venus tapped into to become the household names they are today first started with their mom.

‘I think my mom instilled in us to be confident women, to really believe in ourselves, be proud of our heritage, our hair, and our bodies,’ she said.

Last year, the French Open announced it was updating the dress code to prevent athletes, namely women, from wearing specific outfits.

Serena’s iconic skin-tight catsuit was called out during the announcement by French Tennis Federation president, Bernard Giudicelli, as one look that would be no longer accepted.

‘It will no longer be accepted,’ he said at the time.

But the tennis superstar continued to break barriers and show off her confidence with her outfits by later appearing at the 2018 US Open wearing a black tutu outfit designed by Nike.

The headline-grabbing outfit let everyone know she would not back down from wearing what she wanted on the court.

Flawless: The tennis player had a daughter named Olympia in September 2017 and said it was a slow and steady process to get her body back

Adorable: Serena, pictured with her daughter, said she hopes she can instill similar confidence in Olympia to stand up for herself

Opening up: ”I’m feeling pretty good about my body,’ she told the publication. ‘I worked hard at it in the past eight months to get back from the baby

Now Serena only hopes she can instill similar confidence in her one-year-old daughter, Olympia, who she gave birth to in September 2017.

‘I want her to know that being strong is never easy,’ she continued.

‘Not in this world we are living in…. Standing up for yourself is not going to be easy, but it’s always eventually respected.’

The mom-of-one stunned on the cover wearing a fitted brown dress to show off her form after it bounced back from giving birth.

And she took it slow and steady to get back on the court.

‘I’m feeling pretty good about my body,’ she said. ‘I worked hard at it in the past eight months to get back from the baby. It hasn’t been easy. I’m not 21 anymore. But I did it slow and steady.’

The work paid off as Serena attended the 2018 US Open in September in hopes of earning another Grand Slam title. But she lost in the finals to Naomi Osaka, 21.

It was a controversial loss because of calls made by the umpire. She then battled a media storm of reports asking if she was too angry or justified in her anger for her impassioned debate with the umpire during the game.

Ignoring critics, Serena has moved on from the match and taken time off from tennis to focus on her new clothing line and family.

‘I invested in myself, then ran with it,’ she said about her new clothing line.

‘If you believe in something but you’re not willing to invest your own time or money, why would someone else want to invest in it?’