A former tennis prodigy has described the system in place protecting young players from abuse as broken after recounting her own harrowing experiences.
Jelena Dokic was a former world No.1 junior player who burst onto the main scene at the age of 16 with her remarkable run to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. She won six WTA titles during her career and peaked at a high of No.4 in the world in 2002.
It wasn’t until recent years that full details of the tennis star’s brutal relationship with her father and former coach came to light. In Dokic’s autobiography, “Unbreakable”, written with journalist Jessica Halloran, she opened up about regular beatings she received since she was a child. Something which prompted her depression and suicidal thoughts.
The topic of safeguarding young players in the sport has been brought into the limelight once again following a shocking video from Serbia of a father physically assaulting his 14-year-old daughter at a tennis club. The attacker, who is a Chinese-born national named W.L, has been remanded in custody following a request from the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade and approved by the First Basic Court.
“It was just sickening to watch, as someone who’s been through it,” Dokic told 9news.com.au.
“I was actually kicked until I was unconscious a week before the US Open when I was 16 and it wasn’t the only time.
“Unfortunately, what happens behind closed doors is even worse. “
Dokic’s beating occurred just weeks after her Wimbledon breakthrough and remarkably she recovered well enough to play at the US Open but lost in the first round. However, the psychological effect of these actions from her father went on to haunt her.
Commenting on the incident in Serbia, Dokic has questioned the management of authorities in the region after claiming that W.L attacked somebody else just weeks before he attacked his daughter.
“Allegedly the father and the coach of this 14-year-old girl beat up someone at a tennis academy a few weeks ago,” she said.
“He’s done this to this girl as well, so my question is why is this happening?
“He was banned from a couple of clubs, but he can continue to be at different clubs and different tournaments, so the system clearly is broken – there’s something missing. “
“If you’ve done this already and you’re banned from a club or academy, you shouldn’t be allowed to step anywhere near a tennis club,” she added.
According to the Serbian newspaper Telegraf.rs, W.L’s legal defence team says he admits to beating his child but adds that he did so because she refused to continue training and he wanted to get her back to work. The Publication has claimed that W.L said it is “a tradition in China to respect hierarchy” and he believes he did the right thing because such ‘behaviour’ is unacceptable in his home country.
If he is found guilty, W.L could face between two and 10 years in prison.
