Margaret Court Says Tennis Is 'Full Of Lesbians'

Margaret Court's stance on homosexuality has sparked calls for the Australian Open to take her name off one of its flagship stadiums

Australian great Margaret Court Wednesday claimed "tennis is full of lesbians" and transgender children were the work of "the devil", adding fuel to a simmering row over her views on homosexuality.

AFP report continues:

The 24-time Grand Slam champion, now a Christian pastor, has been the brunt of a fierce backlash after announcing last week she would stop flying Qantas "where possible" in protest at the airline's support of same-sex marriage.

It sparked calls, led by Martina Navratilova and supported by Richel Hogenkamp, one of the few openly gay players in tennis, for the Australian Open to take her name off one of its flagship stadiums.

Court, 74, has vowed to keep airing her views and didn't hold back on Vision Christian Radio station.

"I mean, tennis is full of lesbians, because even when I was playing there was only a couple there, but those couple that led took young ones into parties and things," she said.

"And you know, what you get at the top is often what you'll get right through that sport."

Court has long held strong views about homosexuality, which have previously been slammed by Navratilova and fellow great Billie Jean King, who are both gay.

She insisted she was not against gay people, but wanted to help them.

"We're there to help them overcome. We're not against the people," she said.

"They're human beings and 92 percent, they say in America, have either been abused in some form sexually or emotionally at an early age for them to even be this way."

Asked about transgender children, she claimed their minds had been corrupted.

"That's all the devil... but that's what Hitler did and that's what communism did -- got the mind of the children. And there's a whole plot in our nation, and in the nations of the world to get the minds of the children."

Navratilova and others have called for her name to be stripped from the arena at Melbourne Park, where the first Grand Slam event of the season takes place in January.

There have also been rumblings about players boycotting the court.

World number one Andy Murray said at the French Open on Tuesday he hoped the issue could be resolved long before next year's Australian Open.

"For players to be in a position where you're in a slam and kind of boycotting playing on the court, I think would potentially cause a lot of issues," he was cited as saying by Australian media.

"So I think if something was going to be happening and the players come to an agreement, if they think the name should be changed or whatever, that should be decided before the event -- before the event starts."

Tennis Australia and the operator of the Margaret Court Arena -- Melbourne and Olympic Parks -- have distanced themselves from Court's same-sex marriage stance.

BIOGRAPHY

Court, Margaret Smith

Notable Sports Figures 

COPYRIGHT 2004 The Gale Group, Inc. Margaret Smith Court

1942-

Australian tennis player

Australian Margaret Smith Court was a dominant woman's tennis player in the 1960s and early 1970s. Over the course of her career, she won a total of sixty-two Grand Slam women's singles events, more than anyone in the history of women's tennis, and seventy-nine total singles titles. The first Australian to win Wimbledon, Court won the second Grand Slam in women's singles in 1970. (Maureen Connolly did it in 1953, when it was an all amateur affair). Court also won mixed doubles Grand Slam in 1963. She was the only player to win a Grand Slam in both singles and in doubles. In the days before big prize money, however, Court only earned about a half million dollars for her professional victories.

Court's amazing success led to her becoming the first female tennis player from Australia who had a following. She was known for her great fitness, athleticism, and endurance, and had a game that featured a dominant fore-hand, good volleying skills, and an attacking style of play. Though her game spoke volumes, Court herself was somewhat media shy and she did not really seek publicity. As Bud Collins and Zander Hollander wrote in Bud Collins'

Modern Encyclopedia of Tennis, "For sheer strength of performance and accomplishment there has never been a tennis player to match Margaret Smith Court."

Court's background was not indicative of her future success. Born on July 16, 1942, in Albury, New South Wales, Australia, she was the youngest of four children born into a working class family. Her father worked in a cheese and butter processing plant as a foreman. No one in her family was interested or played the game of tennis (though two siblings were competitive cyclists), though they lived opposite Border Tennis Association.

Early Interest in Tennis

When Court was a child, about age eight or so, she would sneak into the club using empty courts. Her first racquet was a used piece of equipment given to her by a neighbor. She, sometimes with other children in the neighborhood, would play on the courts until they were kicked out. This happened repeatedly until Court was about ten years old.

By that time, Wally Rutter, the owner of the club (or janitor according to some sources), gave Court a membership and tennis lessons. He and his wife had no children, and gave the young self-motivated athlete what her parents could not. When she became old enough, Court also worked there part time to earn her court time.

Even at an early age, Court showed promise as a tennis player. She could hit harder than any girl, and repeatedly won many tournaments for her age groups. Tennis was not her only focus. She often played sports with boys, including cricket and soccer, as well as basketball and softball.

Court was not only a gifted tennis player, but a track star in the 400 meter and 800 meter races. As a teenager, she was in training to be on the Australian Olympic team for the 400 meter and 800 meter races, but gave them up because she believed that the training was negatively affected her tennis game. By the time she was fifteen, had won sixty trophies for tennis.

Trained in Melbourne

By the time Court was in her late teens, Rutter and the local coaches believed that she needed better training. To that end, they contacted world champion Frank Sedgman who had a club in Melbourne, Australia. With her parents' approval, Court moved there and began training with him and other members of his staff. To pay for the training, she worked as a receptionist for the squash courts and gymnasium.

Sedgman and his group gave Court a wide-range of training experiences. Stan Nicholls worked with her inherent athletic ability to give her more fitness than had often been seen in female athletes of the time. Coach Keith Rogers helped her with her strokes. Sedgman worked on tactics and the game as a whole.

The tennis game Court and her coaches developed relied on her athleticism. She had strong volleying abilities, in part because of her childhood days playing with boys. She also played an attacking game that relied on her serve and volley, only using ground strokes when needed. She had a great serve, which she worked on, as well as endurance. The most unusual aspect of the game they developed was playing tennis right-handed, though she was left-handed, something done to a number of lefties in this era.

Early Victories

When Court was seventeen years old, she lost in the finals of the Australian Junior Open Championship, but she also made the finals of the main draw, the Australian Open. Thus, Court won her first Grand Slam (defeating Jan Lehane) when she was only seventeen years and six months old. She was the youngest to ever win the Australian Open.

Court was still an amateur, and though she could have gone to Europe and played on the women's tennis circuit, she did not think she had the stamina nor the speed yet. After winning in the Australian Open, she played in New Zealand and did not do well. For the next year, she worked harder in her training and learned how to deal with the press despite her shyness.

Turned Professional

In 1961, Court won her second Australian Open, against defeating Lehane. She also won the women's doubles championship there. After the victory, Court turned professional, and was able to travel abroad for the first time. She did not go alone or with her family, but with several other Australian women tennis players under the captaincy of Nell Hopman.

In her first year, Court did not do exceptionally well. Though she won the Kent All-Comers Championship, defeating Ann Haydon, she also lost in the quarterfinals of the French Open and Wimbledon. She suffered from nervousness and was not prepared. She also had problems with the schedule and the rules Hopman dictated. The following year, Court refused to travel with them in the 1962 season. Instead, she traveled with an American player and had two friends serve as chaperones. This situation created tension with the official Australian team, but led to more victories for Court.

Chronology

1942	Born July 16 in Albury, New South Wales, Australia
1961	Becomes professional tennis player
1966-68	Briefly retires as professional tennis player
1967	Marries Barry Court on October 28
1968	Returns to professional tennis
1971-72	Misses parts of seasons to have child
1977	Retires as a professional tennis player
1991	Ordained as a minister