Greg speaks with Jelena Dokic Jeff about her new book Fearless – finding the power to thrive.
Finding your power to thrive.
How do you find hope when all is lost? How do you find strength when you feel broken? How do you find your voice when you feel worthless and scared?
In Jelena Dokic’s first bestselling book, Unbreakable, the former world No. 4 revealed her incredible survival story; how she overcame adversity, poverty and violence to rise to the top of the tennis world. Jelena’s revelations about her father’s shocking abuse stunned the world.
Fearless is about how you reclaim life when all feels lost. It’s about learning to reach out for help and healing. It’s about speaking up and the power of sharing our stories. In past years Jelena has dealt with disordered eating and reclaimed her body; she has stood up to body shaming and online abuse. She has faced her mental health demons head-on to find stability in the chaos of life. She has endured a devastating relationship breakdown.
This book is about starting at the bottom and building yourself back up. Jelena opens up on how she has survived trauma and heartache to establish herself as a leading tennis commentator and motivational speaker.
The past years have taught her many tough and important lessons, and now she is ready to share them to help you find your voice and the power to thrive.
Jelena Dokic was a prodigious tennis player who made the quarter-finals of Wimbledon at the age of just 16. She was heralded as Australia’s greatest tennis hope since Evonne Goolagong. She had exceptional skills, a steely nerve and an unrivalled fight on the court. At 17 she reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon. By September 2000 she became an Olympian and finished fourth at the Sydney Games. By 18, she was in the world’s top 10. By 19, she was world No.4, holding her own against Monica Seles, Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport. She was the world No.9 in doubles. She went on to win her first WTA singles title at the Rome Masters in May 2001. She was also a French Open doubles finalist the same year. A shoulder and wrist injury prematurely finished her tennis career in 2013. One of the only female players to have won a WTA title on all four surfaces Jelena now spends her time mentoring young players. She has a vast amount of knowledge to share – her other career highlights include making her Fed Cup debut as a as a 15 year old – the youngest player ever – and winning both matches. She also won the Hopman Cup with Mark Philippoussis at 15. As well as mentoring she also enjoys doing media work. She has worked as a commentator on both Fox Sports News and Channel Seven’s tennis coverage. She currently lives in Melbourne.
