{"id":476811,"date":"2026-02-15T16:35:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T16:35:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/476811\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T16:35:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T16:35:14","slug":"tennis-star-25-retires-with-explosive-statement-branding-sport-racist-misogynistic-and-homophobic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/476811\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennis star, 25, retires with explosive statement branding sport ‘racist, misogynistic and homophobic’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australian tennis player Destanee Aiava declared on Saturday that she will step away from professional tennis when the 2026 ATP Tour season concludes, delivering a scathing assessment of the sport in a candid Instagram post.<\/p>\n

The 25-year-old, who has claimed 10 ITF singles titles throughout her career, likened tennis to a “toxic boyfriend” in her farewell message.<\/p>\n

Her statement pulled no punches, opening with: “I want to say a ginormous f**k you to everyone in the tennis community who’s ever made me feel less than.”<\/p>\n

Aiava also took aim at online critics, writing: “F**k you to the people who sit behind screens on social media, commenting on my body, my career or whatever the f**k they want to nitpick.”<\/p>\n

The Australian directed particular ire at tennis’s traditional image, stating: “And f**k you to a sport that hides behind so-called class and gentlemanly values.”<\/p>\n

She accused the sport of concealing deep-rooted prejudice beneath its polished exterior.<\/p>\n

“Behind the white outfits and traditions is a culture that’s racist, misogynistic, homophobic and hostile to anyone who doesn’t fit the mould,” Aiava wrote.<\/p>\n

\"Destanee<\/p>\n

Destanee Aiava claimed 10 ITF singles titles throughout her career<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

GETTY<\/p>\n

Her blistering critique suggests years of frustration with an environment she believes excludes those who differ from conventional expectations.<\/p>\n

The 10-time ITF champion’s words represent one of the most forthright condemnations of tennis culture from a professional player in recent memory.<\/p>\n

Despite her evident frustration with tennis, Aiava expressed profound gratitude for the opportunity to serve as a role model for aspiring athletes from similar backgrounds.<\/p>\n

\"TennisFive facts for tennis fans | GETTY\/PA<\/p>\n

“I am deeply humbled that I have been able to inspire young boys and girls who look like me, to not be afraid to chase their dreams no matter what the room looks like,” she wrote.<\/p>\n

The Australian acknowledged the support she has received throughout her career, adding: “Without you, there wouldn’t be me.”<\/p>\n

“I am proud to have been one of the few you saw on a stage that wasn’t built for us.”<\/p>\n

Aiava also emphasised her desire to find genuine fulfilment, writing that her “ultimate goal is to be able to wake up everyday and genuinely say I love what I do.”<\/p>\n

\"Destanee<\/p>\n

Destanee Aiava likened tennis to a “toxic boyfriend” in her farewell message<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

GETTY<\/p>\n

Aiava’s retirement announcement follows a difficult start to 2026, having failed to qualify for the main draw at her home Grand Slam earlier this year.<\/p>\n

She did compete in the doubles competition at the Australian Open alongside Maddison Inglis, though the pair suffered a straight-sets loss to Aldila Sutjiadi and Giulianna Olmos.<\/p>\n

Following that defeat, Aiava posted candidly about her mental state, writing: “The only way I can sum it up is disappointment.”<\/p>\n

She described two decades of effort as feeling like “a waste of time,” adding: “This feeling will pass in time but f**k RN it feels like a deep dark hole I can’t get out of, maybe that’s what sport does to you.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australian tennis player Destanee Aiava declared on Saturday that she will step away from professional tennis when the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":476812,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[442],"tags":[49,48,44,12384,457,82,593],"class_list":["post-476811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tennis","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-news","tag-sgg","tag-sport","tag-sports","tag-tennis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=476811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/476812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=476811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=476811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=476811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}