Jelena Dokic, a former tennis player who currently works as an expert analyst for Channel Nine at the Australian Open, has spoken out against the body shaming she has received online. Former Wimbledon semifinalist Serena Williams expressed anger at the tone of some comments sent to her, but vowed to continue using her public platform “for something good” and “Try to make people feel less alone.”
Dokic shared screenshots of messages she received Instagram and Twitter who made derogatory comments about her height. The 39-year-old called a conversation with another person online “bad” and claimed that others should be ashamed.
“The most common comment is ‘what happened to her, she’s so big’? I’ll tell you what happened, I’ll find a way and survive and fight. And it really doesn’t matter what I’m doing and what happened because size shouldn’t matter,” Dokic wrote.
“Kindness and being a good person matter, which those of you who abuse me and others obviously don’t.”
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In the interest of “I am still here fighting for all those who are being abused [and] very ashamed”.
“I can’t change the world but I will continue to speak up, expose this behavior, use my platform for good and support other people out there and give others a voice and try to make others feel less alone. ”
The company that employs Dokic has pledged to stand behind her and do everything in their power to end the online harassment she endured.
Jelena Dokic, former tennis champion, did the hardest work in her social contactshttps://t.co/OnwUZ5AZoK
— Humanit’Elles (@humanitelles) January 24, 2023
A spokesperson for Nine said: “Jelena is a valued member of our team and we are committed to protecting our people from the destructive and harmful online trolls taking place,”
“These anonymous poisoners must be brought to justice and we will continue to raise the matter with the appropriate authorities until they are apprehended.”
After initially being reluctant to talk about her mental health, Dokic has since spoken openly about the severe emotional and physical abuse she suffered at the hands of her father, Damir Dokic. Dokic, a former tennis prodigy who reached No. 4 in the world, published a book in 2017 in which she discussed her father’s significance in her life and career.
Dokic describes her unique life experiences in her book Unbreakable. She claims to have survived years of torture during which she was beaten so severely that she passed out, beaten regularly with a leather belt, emotionally manipulated and subjected to terrible verbal harassment.
Dokic writes in her autobiography that playing tennis for Yugoslavia instead of her native Australia is her greatest regret. Dokic’s career has been marked by many highlights, and she returned to the Australian national team after gaining massive public support for reaching the quarter-finals of the 2009 Australian Open.
