Jelena Dokic has shared a confronting image that lays bare the abuse she endured as a teenager at the hands of her father- even as she fought her way to the top of world tennis.
The 42-year-old former World Number 4 posted the image to social media on Monday, showing severe bruising to her legs.
The photo was taken during the 2000 US Open, when the then-17-year-old was still competing against the sport’s best.
“From every wound there is a scar. These were just a very small amount of my wounds from just one beating out of many as a child,” Dokic captioned the post.
“It left scars and I still have them to this day. While I will never forget, it does not define me or defeat me and in fact I use it to turn pain into power and purpose and make a difference in my life and maybe someone else’s.”
In a second post, the Australian-Croatian star shared several shots of her younger self looking visibly distressed, both on court and in front of the media.
“No shame but pride. It’s time to recognise, support and praise victims and survivors of domestic violence, child abuse, mental health illnesses, sexual abuse, bullying..….etc,” she wrote.
“It’s time for us to be able to show and talk about the worst parts of our society that happen so often behind closed doors and be able to do it without the shame of the world.”
She urged society to strip away stigma and blame from survivors, saying: “Shame needs to go at the abusers, perpetrators and those shaming. And to all the victims and survivors out there of child abuse, domestic violence, mental health illnesses, sexual abuse, bullying…..etc. just remember you are so brave and never ever feel shame because you are courageous and strong for surviving it.”
Dokic has long spoken of her upbringing under her father, Damir, and her survival has been detailed in her Logie Award-winning documentary Unbreakable, which tells her story as a two-time refugee, abuse survivor and tennis champion.
These days, the Channel Nine sports commentator divides her time between media, writing, and motivational speaking.
On Tuesday, she travelled to Perth, where she addressed a MercyCare WA event alongside health advocate Casey Beros.
She then shared a picture of herself giving a speech and encouraged her followers to to step outside their comfort zones.
“Here is the thing. You will never be 100 percent ready to do it, start or try. ‘Ready’ is what happens and what you become after you have taken the ‘step’ or ‘leap’,” Dokic said.
“Every win and success starts with a first step that looked messy, unsure, awkward and it took losses, failures, mistakes and falls to get there. Get comfortable being uncomfortable.”
The beloved former tennis star, who only last month was hospitalised after surgery to remove a non-cancerous uterine growth, also shared a light-hearted snap from her travels- joking about her relentless schedule with a photo taken aboard a plane: “Flight, airport, city, hotel, event number 123456790” with a trail of smiley emojis.