Former Australian tennis champion Jelena Dokic is set to tell her life story in a new documentary to be released next month.
This week a trailer was released for the documentary titled “Unbreakable.”
The story of Dokic is well known. She was born in Yugoslavia and her family moved to Australia when she was 11 years old.
Making a name for herself as a talented junior tennis player, Dokic won the 1998 US Open girls title and the French Open doubles with Kim Clijsters.
She won the Hopman Cup in 1999 for Australia with Mark Philippoussis.
Her breakthrough moment came that same year when as a 16-year-old qualifier, she upset Martina Hingis in the first round at Wimbledon and made a run to the quarterfinals.
In 2000 she reached the Wimbledon semifinals, her best result at a grand slam.
After a turbulent period in the mid 2000s, she made a comeback to tennis and made a fairytale run to the quarterfinals at the 2009 Australian Open.
But behind the scenes her relationship with her father Damir Dokic became strained and in her 2017 memoir “Unbreakable” she detailed the horrific physical and mental abuse she suffered at the hands of her father.
The documentary has taken three years to produce, with the official trailer released by movie studio, Village Roadshow, this week.
The film was written by Ivan O’Mahoney and journalist Jessica Halloran, and features plenty of big names from the tennis world.
In the trailer, Dokic is heard reflecting on her father’s abuse, and breaks down in tears at one stage.
“I’m 16 years old. I’m playing the World No. 1 Martina Hingis,” she said. “I knew that if I lost, the consequences would be catastrophic. One day after I lost, he was extremely angry. I knew what was going to happen.
“There was not an inch of skin that wasn’t bruised. I’m 17 and through his actions, (I) became the most hated person.”
Featured is Dokic’s contemporary Lindsay Davenport, the three-time grand slam champion who was the top female tennis player in the world at the turn of the century.
“Some other players had noticed bruising,” said Davenport, who played Dokic several times.
American doubles legend Pam Shriver added: “When you look back and see what she did accomplish, wow.”
Australian journalist Richard Hinds says in the documentary: “From fairly early times, there were rumors about what was happening. Questions were asked, but they hit a brick wall.”
Leading tennis reporter Christopher Clarey added: “Could I have had dug deeper to uncover what was really going on? I think a lot of us could have.”
The reaction to the trailer’s release has been overwhelmingly positive and Dokic has been inundated with support.
Tennis account Christian’s Court wrote on X: “The trailer for Jelena Dokic’s “Unbreakable” is so chilling.”
Dokic, now one of Australia’s leading tennis commentators and a fierce advocate for mental health, has been very open about her battles with body image, hitting back at social media trolls who have criticised her weight.
Earlier this year the 41-year-old revealed she had lost 45 pounds as part of a bid to look after her health.
The former tennis star said between turning 40 and her own creeping health issues, she started to really think about her family history of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart problems.
“This is about health and not size. So many questions about me getting healthier, which has seen me lose weight,” she said. “Weight loss was not a priority. It’s just a by-product of looking after my health.”
Dokic said it was small changes over time that helped her sustain her health goals.
“I stopped eating late at night especially things like burgers, pizza, fries and desserts because they made me feel so sluggish when I would wake up especially for early morning work and flights,” she said.
“So I don’t eat heavy meals at night anymore and I don’t eat after 7pm. It’s small changes over time and while I still have my cheeseburger and fries days it’s just a lot less and I definitely don’t eat junk food when I am working and traveling.
“Just consistency and small changes overtime. I have also exercised more. Little changes for a healthier lifestyle. Remember it’s not one size fits all and do what is best for you. Everyone is different.”
