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WHEN most people think of Jelena Dokic, they think of a prodigious tennis player who made the quarterfinals of Wimbledon at the tender age of 16, the semifinals of Wimbledon at 17, a Sydney Olympian (finishing fourth), in the world’s top 10 by the age of 18 and holding the number four single and number nine doubles rankings by the time she was 19.
But, Jelena Dokic is much more than just a former tennis player who had exceptional skills, a steely nerve and an unrivalled fight on the court.
Her childhood and youth were defined by physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her father until she left home at the age of 19.
Jelena is an inspiration.
She is unbreakable.
She is fearless.
Jelena escaped a war, lived as a refugee — twice — she was subject to bullying, and suffered immense physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her father, all while training to be a tennis champion. Jelena suffered in silence for years, and it wasn’t until her first book ‘Unbreakable’ was released in 2017 that she was able to unburden her secrets and her revelations about her father’s shocking abuse stunned the world.
This short extract shows the kind of man she lived with and how she was treated.
“I don’t know where my dad is. I’m standing in the plush Wimbledon players’ lounge waiting, looking around for him: we’re due to go out for a nice dinner with my managers, Ivan and John. I am 17 years old and I have just played in the semi-finals. Of Wimbledon. Surely, you’d think, he would be okay that I got this far at the All England Club. You would think.
This has been my greatest run ever in a grand slam and I want to know what he’ll say, and to organise how we will get to dinner with Ivan and John. So I call him again, and this time, finally, he picks up. The dull slur in his slow, loud voice tells me he is drunk. I know this tone; it’s the tone of white wine and probably a few glasses of whisky. He is angry. Furious that I lost. His voice booms down the phone. ‘You are pathetic, you are a hopeless cow, you are not to come home. You are an embarrassment. You can’t stay at our hotel.’”
Jelena’s new book – Fearless – was released in September this year and shares the impact her formative years have had on her, and her refusal to be defined by her trauma – she is determined to grow, be stronger and wiser because of it, and wants to help others who may also be suffering. In the book, Jelena opens up on how she has survived
trauma and heartache to establish herself as a leading tennis commentator and motivational speaker.
Don’t miss your chance to hear from this incredible woman and one of tennis’ most influential figures at the Wangaratta Lawn Tennis Club in Merriwa Park tomorrow, Saturday, 9 December from 2pm.
Team members from Edgars Books and News will be in attendance so you can purchase copies of Unbreakable and Fearless and have Jelena sign them.
If you can’t make it on the day, call Edgars Books and News on 5721 3758 or visit the store at 55 Murphy Street Wangaratta to organise a signed copy.