Venus Williams Pulls Out Open, “I’m really disappointed to have to withdraw.”

Earlier in the week, tennis star Venus Williams seemed to be excited and healthy enough to play in the U.S. Open. She tweeted:

But Wednesday afternoon, the news hit that Williams would not be competing because she has been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. According to Wiki, an autoimmune disease arises from an overactive immune response of the body against substances and tissues normally present in the body.The immune system mistakes some part of the body as a pathogen and attacks it.

Williams released a statement explaining:

“I’m really disappointed to have to withdraw from this year’s U.S. Open. I have recently been diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease which is an ongoing medical condition that affects my energy level and causes fatigue and joint pain.”

No word on when she will return to tennis. Peep the full story here.