Controversy is swirling in Melbourne around John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova’s on-court protest of Margaret Court Arena. Or its name, to be more precise, since I’m sure they like the arena itself just fine. “Evonne Goolagong Arena” their hand-made banner read, a reference to the Australian Aboriginal former world No. 1 who is not a hate-speech-spewing shrew.
The story goes like this. Margaret Court is the winningest Grand Slam champion of all time. She has 24 majors. She has a calendar-year Grand Slam (1970). She is Australian. She should be a player of whom all of Australia can be proud. Unfortunately, she is also guilty of publicly saying some of the most viciously hateful things I have ever heard from the mouth of an athlete.
She’s a Christian minister who doesn’t just opine that homosexuality is a sin, she actively campaigns against basic homosexual rights. She has stated derisively that tennis is “full of lesbians” and deemed that transgender children are the “work of the devil”. She is, in short, a person quite worthy of protest.
Enter Martina and Johnny Mac. Three years ago, Navratilova began asking for a change to the name of Margaret Court Arena. Tennis Australia ignored her. They, in fact, honored the Rev. Margaret Court this year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of her Calendar Slam.
Thus Martina found a more…public way to get their attention. With the help of John McEnroe. She climbed up on the umpire’s chair after her Legends match on Tuesday and began addressing the crowd regarding her cause. The tournament people cut the television feed. Not to be silenced, she hopped down, and she and Mac unrolled the banner with their new name suggestion.
Controversy is nothing new to J-Mac and Martina. Navratilova wore a hat on court during a Legends doubles match at Wimbledon last year that said IMPEACH, a statement of support for the impeachment of President Trump…and decidedly not allowed at the All-England Club. She also wrote an op ed early last year claiming that transgender girls competing in sports against biological girls was “cheating” (a position she later walked back on).
And for his part, McEnroe is one of the most controversial tennis players of all time. The hot-tempered, foul-mouthed American was ejected from his 1990 Australian Open match against Mikael Pernfors for verbal obscenities and intimidating a lineswoman. He once had his membership at the Queen’s Club revoked because he unleashed a verbal assault on the wife of the chairman of the club that was so nasty, she wouldn’t repeat what he said to her. That he has courted (no pun intended) controversy for a noble cause this week is worth noting.
Tennis Australia doesn’t even bother trying to argue that Court isn’t awful. They know she is. Everyone knows she is. They contend that the honor of her name on a show court is not a reflection of her personal views, but of her impressive accomplishments. And they’re quite put out that as guests of the tournament (journalists with credentials), John and Martina used that hospitality as a forum to embarrass their host.
They’re not wrong and yet they’re completely wrong. McEnroe and Navratilova did abuse the hospitality of the tournament…but you know what? They shouldn’t have had to. Imagine if the Good Reverend Court had said that black, Indian, or Asian children are from the devil? The entire world would be incensed and that name would come off the stadium before she finished the sentence. RIGHTFULLY SO. This is no different. None.
Oh. And if I might be so bold? I’m pretty sure the most important protocols were not broken by John and Martina.
That court name is the embarrassment to the AO, not what Martina and Johnny Mac did/said in protest. Tennis has had even worse “champions” but at least there aren’t any courts named for them. Winning at tennis does not make a person a model of human virtue – we’ve just been lucky lately.
Good for J. McEnroe. He’s got no dog in this fight, aside from human decency.
Yup. I was thinking of Bill Tilden at first and thought about how I’d feel if they suddenly named a court in California after him because of his “accomplishments”.
I think McEnroe and Navratilova never had a court named after them,maybe they’re jealous.
How about Serena Arena🤔
I like it – submit it to the USTA.
You read it here first
Margaret Court is a nasty old piece of work. Probably senile too.
They could re-name the stadium, I’m sure there’s some sort of precedent for that. But TA make a valid point, and one that people don’t want to hear. Why is this stadium named after in the first place? Answer: Because she is a champion of a game. What does that actually mean? She is somebody who was ridiculously good at using a stick to hit a ball within a series of painted lines. This required a lot of hard work, persistence, mental strength and whatever else you want to throw in there. But at the end of the day, she’s just someone who’s good at moving in a particular physical way that involves hitting a fuzzy little ball.
A problem arises, however, when sports and sports ‘heroes’ get a certain mythology in life. These people are held up as idols and ‘legends’. In reality, they might be awful human beings who happen to be good at a particular thing. In some cases it wouldn’t be known, or it’s just papered over by PR, but that’s the reality. The truth is that nobody knows Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer nearly as well as they think they do. Being able to hit a ball really well (or play a guitar, or act in a film) really well does not preclude you from being an awful human being.
At the end of it all, what do you want to do? Continually re-name things after sporting idols & others that turn out to breach some moral standard. Or, name things based on achievements and admit that it doesn’t necessarily have any great bearing on an athlete’s character and life outside sport?
Comfortable delusions are probably preferred.
+1
The Margaret Court Arena is not only a Tennis venue. It is a landmarks and has a visibility to a larger public than just the tennis audience.
Thus the name can be googled by anyone interested, and in that way effect how the tennis community is perceived. Probably as a part of that community, Johnny Mac and Navratilova has acted.
I don’t know much about the controversy of Margaret Court, does she stick to purely Biblical teachings?
Full support to Margaret Court and her conservative values. Sure, gay people deserve their rights 100%, however do not make liberal political agenda out of it! If you like liberalism in your country, do not use military-industrial complex to impose your own liberal values in a quest for world resources.
How does re-naming a tennis arena count as using the military-industrial complex in a quest for world resources?
I think he’s having a go at Navratilova and Trump, but I could be wrong.
What a bigot she is, we live in the 21 st century, WTF is she talking about, i dont blame Mac and Martina one bit for wanting the name changed, shes supposed to be an ambassador for the sport of tennis, having said that as much as i dont agree with her, i dont agree with the on court protest, theres a time and a place, and better ways of going about these things, like taking it up with the tennis federation ….
If you want to live your life in a perverted way go ahead with full speed don’t stop ok, if there is anyway I can help to speed up the process please let me know.
Just know this homosexuality is a disgusting lifestyle, unnatural, but importantly it’s ungoldly and those who practice this will die lost for all eternity if they don’t repent.
To be clear I believe in freewill, everyone has a right to live their own life however they please and I support that right even if it’s used for perverted purposes as long as it doesn’t affect innocent people or infringes on others rights to live their life, work, faith etc.
If you want to hump a bear trap go ahead just know this we will all reap what we sow.
What a Fool just because we live in the 21st century doesn’t mean there aren’t right and wrongs.
Somehow idiots think morality changes just because time changes, if it’s wrong to murder, rape, steal and commit all kinds of evil a thousand year ago it is still wrong today and it will be wrong tomorrow, next day, 2030,2050 2100 etc why?
Because God’s moral law transcends time, whether you believe it or not it doesn’t matter wrong will always be wrong and will always be right no matter if it’s the 22nd century beyond.
There is always more than one defintion of what people believe is right or wrong, you believe im wrong , i believe you are wrong , and thats fair enough, im not talking about rape and murder etc, as yes those things are wrong, and theres no argument there, i have many friends that are gay and also happily married, and have been for many years, and are some of the nicest people i could wish to meet, they dont make an issue out of it, anymore than straight people make an issue about been straight, so what ? nobody cares , just been happy, theres wars going on in the world, why not be positive and try to stop them happening, or at least try ?
Selective truth 🤣😂🤣, my truth, your truth, their truth with that stupid mindset anyone can justify anything just so you know their are fools who think rape is ok and those who justify murdering innocent people in cold blood, even babies etc etc I am sure some of this reprobates believe what they are doing is right.
When it comes to Morality there is not more than one definition you can’t call good 👉 evil and evil 👉 good only a reprobate who’s heart and conscience is dead will do so or someone who is deceived or self-deception.
Hmm okay then , i dont see been gay as been evil, i see war, rape, killing evil, but i dont see loving people of the same sex as evil, we dont cant help who we love ….
Love? Do you even know what love is?
You confuse filthy lust for love, I love my siblings, my friends(male and female) etc I love my male friends and care about them but that’s where it stops nothing more but Goldy love.
I used have a dog, I loved them and took care of them nothing more.
Love is not unnatural or ungoldly you Fool, whether it’s homosexuality, beastiality etc this are unnatural, immoral, against nature itself, against common sense.
Don’t mistake perversion for love, you have a habit of doing so in different topics.
I’m busy right now and have important things to do and I’m sure you have better things to do as well but Alison I don’t know you personally but we have chatted here over the years for sometime you sincerely need to examine yourself and the way you reason I say this respectfully.
If my words are harsh/personal I apologize, I hope you see my point and the truth I am trying to convey, I sincerely wish you well regardless of what you believe and practice I just hope one day you will see the light.
Oh my, the God-botherers and biblical basics are out in force.
Do you people seriously believe what’s written in the bible? It’s not handed down by the lord. It’s a book created by relatively primitive and uneducated humans thousands of years ago. Large chunks of it are copy-pasted from prior myths and stories about saviors and other figures. Despite the engaging narrative, why do you think it’s full of absurd rules like ‘lepers aren’t welcome in the house of God because they displease him with their impurities’ and ‘those who wear cloth of two materials shall be put to death’ and ‘those who create unpleasing smells for God (wtf?) shall be punished’. I could go on all day, there’s so much laughable gibberish in there.
Instead of just selectively approving of a few bits that confirm your existing view of the world, actually give it a thorough read some time. You’ll find it’s more nutty than a fruitcake – just like Margaret Court.
@thinwhiteduke
You are probably one of the dumbest people I have read/met in 2020 bravo.
The problem with morons like you is that you read but don’t understand, you have eyes and ears but you can’t see or hear the truth because you don’t seek the truth or the wisdom of God you just parrot what your fellow morons say.
If you have any misunderstanding you have a phone or a computer a simple Google Search will point you to many websites and ministers who will explain and teach you God’s word if you are willing to listen.
It’s very easy to recognize a brainless Fool and the last thing that I will do is to waste more time with a Fool like you.
It truly is amazing how people like yourself who know nothing about God’s word or his character seem to act like experts on God’s word 😂 blind fool.
This is what I will say Jesus/God loves the sinner obviously so He died for the sin of the world, He loves the sick and He healed them, the greatest sickness of all is death, spiritual death but in Christ Jesus anyone who puts their trust in God and ask him to forgive them of their sins will overcome death and have eternal life through Jesus Christ.
More can be said because God’s word, His love and mercies are inexhaustible.
If you have any misunderstanding all you have to do is ask or seek for the truth sincerely and honestly and you will find it.
A blind Fool cannot understand the things of God without the Holy Spirit and as for the Bible God uses people that’s how he works he always has yesterday, today and forever because God loves and will use anyone who will open their heart to Him.
Stanley I’m not sure Jesus would be a big fan of this response, you better have another go at reading what he apparently has to say. Why are you angry at me? Are you worried deep down that the bible might not quite be the word of God?
Don’t worry, it’s not just the bible. It’s any religious text that one might be indoctrinated with.
“you just parrot what your fellow morons say”
An ironically apt description of many followers of religion.
“As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his/her folly”
“Don’t cast your pearls before swine”
My mistake.
Few things are more threatening to most adults than having his/her world view challenged. Quite literally wars are fought over this. “God is Love!” some cry, “Kill the Unbelievers!” they add. So it goes. I suppose if you kill or convert the unbelievers you’re left with only those you Love. But that’s never, ever, actually worked. Never.
No need for an apology i dont need one, and i dont want one, i stand by my opinion, and you stand by yours, and thats fine, its nothing personal i just dont agree with you ….
Above post for Stanley, and i dont believe in god, or man made religions, if you do then thats your perogative, im pagan and i believe in a higher level, we dont preach, or judge, about whats right or wrong, we just have respect for each others beliefs, and personal choices ….
Again if you read my words carefully and exercise a little wisdom you will understand that I have said countless of times you are free to believe what you want even if it’s perverted and foolish you have that right and freewill.
All I am doing is exposing the stupidity of that mindset and perversion that you believe, support and practice.
Just be clear God doesn’t love sin, He loves the sinner and hates our sins that’s why we should sincerely repent and ask for forgiveness.
Stanley this song is for you https://youtu.be/QqDGX50j7KU very poingant , listen to the words, and try to learn something ….
Unfortunately for the future of humanity, there are more than a few religious lunatics like Stanley among us. It is a fascinating psychological question how religious fanaticism can utterly disarm the rational capacities such nut-jobs clearly possess in other contexts.
Nothing wrong with being religious, its the fanaticism bit thats the problem.
Which compares to loving tennis , and being a fanatical supporter of one player in particular.
‘Fanaticism’ about favorite tennis players is just fine. There’s no question of truth as to who should be one’s favorite tennis player, and one can like a particular player for any reason or no reason at all. But there is a question of truth about whether there is a god, or, I would say, whether there is anything morally wrong about homosexuality (no, and no, in my view). To have a reasonable position on those questions, one has to give reasons that others can, in principle, recognize and share.
Of course, reasonable people can disagree about whether there is a god. Perhaps reasonable people can disagree about whether homosexuality is morally wrong. But to reasonable, you have to produce reasons, not just cite scripture or the alleged word of one’s god. From what I can tell, fanatics like Stanley never even try to give reasons.
Well, my reasons for saying fanaticism in wrong is that its unhealthy , whether tennis fanship or otherwise.Look at the reactions of some of the fans on here who don’t sleep the night before a big match and end up in tears if their favourite loses.
Theres more to life than being reasonable ,though I do see your point. One reason for disagreeing with homosexuality is that its unnatural .Esp. children of transsexuals. Unnatural, unhealthy.
Not that I agree with Stanley for one second,he’s just quoting someone else.