By Sean Rudolph
© Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA

(July 7, 2010) It wasn't exactly buzz-building book PR — the day Venus Williams' new book "Come To Win: How Sports Can Help You Ace Your Goals and Top Your Profession" was released last week, the five-time Wimbledon champion suffered a shocking straight-sets loss to World No. 82 Tsvetana Pironkova in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

It was Venus' earliest exit from The Championships in four years.

In reality, Williams says her loss is reinforces the theme of her book: that sports can provide life lessons to those who play them.

"The reality is that we have to learn from the successes and the losses," Williams told Bloomberg Radio. "That’s what makes life interesting, facing the challenges and finding a way to get through them."

Venus shared the doubles court with sister Serena during Wimbledon. Venus goes between the covers with former President Bill Clinton, designer Vera Wang, actor Denzel Washington and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

Venus interviewed Clinton, Wang, Washington and Rice for her 354-page book co-written by Kelly E. Carter and published by Harper Collins.

"It's really about how sport changes your life. I'm not sure if any of you have played sport in your life, but it makes a big difference," Williams said. "We did a lot of interviews with a lot of great people, fashion designers, Vera Wang and politicians like Bill Clinton and Condoleezza Rice and how they started out in sports and how it made a huge difference in their life. Obviously they didn't become professional athletes, but they became great people in their field. So how those lessons, the lessons that sport taught them, and how they even still apply at what they do now."

Williams received a phone call from then President Clinton after her US Open title triumph and famously asked him if he could do anything about her taxes. Clinton, who lives in the suburbs of New York City and has attended the US Open in the past, is an avid runner and told Venus about his experience playing rugby.

"I was just glad to have him on the phone. You know, people with such a busy schedule, you hope you can get 20 minutes. It ended up being like 45, so I was overjoyed," Williams said. "He played rugby, and I think he played football at first, but rugby ended up being his better sport. I mean, to this day he still runs. Right now he's involved with childhood obesity and helping, you know, it keep kids healthy. That's his main cause at the moment."

As for her own sporting aspirations, the 30-year-old Williams says tennis is her top priority and retirement is not a consideration.

"Right now, I’m at the top of the world in my game so my focus isn’t on when I’m going to end," Williams told Bloomberg Radio. "My focus is on playing the best tennis that I can, and there is no end to that."