"I went through hell and back": What happened to Jelena Dokic?

Jelena Dokic was once one of the best female tennis players in the world. The Australian amazed fans from a young age with her skills on the court, but also went through difficult periods in her life. This is Dokic's story.

Dokic was born in Osijek on 12 April 1983, which was then part of SFR Yugoslavia. Her family moved to Australia when she was 11 and settled in Fairfield, New South Wales.

As a junior, Dokic showed her immense talent by winning the US Open singles title and the French Open doubles together with Belgium's Kim Clijsters (pictured).

READ MORE: What happened to Kim Clijsters, the first mother to be a World No 1?

She first made a name for herself on the professional circuit in 1999 by winning the Hopman Cup with Mark Philipoussis, Australia's first-ever title in the event.

Dokic, however, really broke through at Wimbledon in 1999, where she beat then-world No. 1 Martina Hingis in the first round.

Dokic advanced to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon that year, where she lost to Alexandra Stevenson. Her performances in 1999 earned her a world No. 43 ranking at the end of the year.

Wimbledon seemed to suit Dokic well, as she also did well in 2000. This time, she reached the semi-finals before losing to Lindsay Davenport.

READ MORE: What happened to former tennis world No. 1 Lindsay Davenport?

In 2000, she also came close to writing her name in the Olympic history books in front of her Australian home crowd in Sydney, but Monica Seles deprived her of the bronze medal.

In 2001, she began representing Yugoslavia on the international tennis scene, reportedly under pressure from her father.

That same year, she won her first WTA singles title by beating Amélie Mauresmo in straight sets at the Italian Open.

In 2001, she also reached the only Grand Slam final of her career in doubles alongside Spain's Conchita Martinez (pictured), but lost to Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suárez.

Dokic would go on to win two more singles titles in 2001 and finished the year world No. 8.

In 2002, she continued her good run with a quarter-final at the French Open, a title in Birmingham and a fourth round at Wimbledon, allowing her to reach a career-high singles ranking of world No. 4.

In late 2005, she decided to represent Australia again, after a bumpy period in her career in which she dropped drastically in the rankings.

At the time, Dokic had no impact at the majors until 2009, when she reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

This allowed her to fight her way back in the rankings and, that same year, she won the sixth and last WTA singles titles in her career, in Kuala Lumpur.

This was the last major highlight of Dokic's career, who struggled with various injuries thereafter and was eventually forced to retire in 2014.

After her playing career, Dokic stayed in tennis and started working as a tennis commentator.

She also tried her hand at coaching and wrote for Australian Tennis Magazine.

In 2017, she published her autobiography, 'Unbreakable'.

In the book, she opened up about the abuse suffered by her father Damir, who coached her during her career and had a bad reputation.

Dokic even tells how she lost consciousness in 2000 when her father hit her after she lost in the first round of a tournament.

After her retirement, Dokic also opened up about her unhealthy eating habits.

"I ate junk food every day and it got to a stage, that was what I was eating, was completely opposite to what I was used to eating as an athlete," she explained to The Sunday Telegraph.

She got fitter, but did not hide from the fact that she was still struggling. "I just want to show that we all have our battles... This is firstly a mental battle then a physical one and it's hard. The fight to get fitter and healthier starts with the head and the battle with yourself. I had many tough days and I still do," she wrote on Instagram.

In 2023, Dokic opened up about online abuse by people who commented on her weight. On Instagram, she did not hold back and addressed those individuals directly.

"I went through hell and back and I survived and today I try to help others. That’s what happened. And for those that still don’t get the point, well that says everything about you. Beauty isn’t about being a certain size, beauty is having a beautiful heart and soul," she wrote.

Today, Dokic will be remembered not only as a former top tennis player, but also as a strong person who stood and still stands up for her values.