Jelena Dokic shares exciting career update
Aussie tennis great Jelena Dokic has revealed she has two major projects coming up as her career continues to soar.
Since retiring, Dokic, 39, has gained a loyal fan base thanks to her sharp tennis commentary and sharing the tough times she’s faced with online abuse, family violence, body-shaming and depression.
The former World No. 4 regularly posts raw and inspiring content on Instagram, even sharing that at one point she came close to taking her own life.
In an update on her career, she revealed she has a second book being released, and a documentary about her is wrapping up production.
The 39-year-old’s autobiography Unbreakable, which focused on the physical and mental abuse she endured from her father, turned out to be a huge success.
Her upcoming book, Fearless, will be focusing on her ongoing campaign against body shaming and her battle with mental health issues.
The tennis champ is both working full time on the speaking circuit and appearing in fashion campaigns for Witchery.
Speaking to Channel 9’s Today, Dokic told hosts, “I have been really busy,”
“I thought I’d get a bit of a break after the Australian Open so I did for a week and that’s it.
“(I’m) full time on the speaker circuit now as well which is amazing. I absolutely love that and love sharing my story.
“A lot of important campaigns with a few fashion brands which are really focused on really good causes especially when it comes to women.”
She also mentioned she has been “really busy writing my second book”.
“We’re almost at the end,” she said.
“It is coming out in September. It is (called) ‘Fearless’. We just came up actually with that headline now, 48 hours ago.
“I am really excited because the first book was amazing. It was so successful. It was now five years ago since it’s come out. I have a bit of pressure with this one, I feel like. In a good way. I really want it to be another amazing piece that people can get something helpful out it.
“The first book was purely my autobiography. This second one is going deep into mental health, trauma and healing, social media as well, body image and body shaming.
“But ultimately I want it to be a book of hope and something that people can pick up, get a bit of inspiration from and just go really a little bit deeper into some of those things and some of the mental health things I have never even spoken about.”
Her upcoming documentary Unbreakable is in post production stages and is set for release in 2024 after cameras followed her for three years.
“We are pretty much done filming a lot of that,” Dokic said.
“I am really excited because there will be a lot of other people in it, ex-players, former World No. 1s. To be able to tell my story but on screen is so powerful so I can’t wait for that to come out.”
The tennis star has been very open about her experience with hate she receives online, describing the abusive comments she received during the Australian Open as “disgusting” and “a new low”.
She added that she always tries to find the light in negative situations and her book will uphold that inspiring message.
“I tried to keep it open and honest and raw as you know,” Dokic shared.
“I want to be really real and authentic. That’s what I want to be known for and what I want my legacy to be.
“I think we can turn lot of negatives into positives and I’ve learned that in my life so far whether that was on the tennis court as an athlete but also off the court.
“I worked incredibly hard after retiring really early at 29 due to injury, how to reinvent myself as well and had to work really hard on that.
“I think ultimately it is about finding the positives and not going back, not thinking about the past and trying to do good. I think we can do a lot and help other people.
“If I can raise awareness about things that can save lives there is nothing better than that in the world. I want that to be my legacy.”
Image credit: Instagram