Family life: Tennis star Sam Stosur, her partner Liz Astling and their baby
She may be a world-class tennis player but Sam Stosur is famously private about her personal life — until she announced she had a baby girl with her partner Liz. We reveal more about the couple’s relationship and their new life together.
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It was an announcement as remarkable as it was understated. Sam Stosur, a famously private person and one of Australia’s top women athletes of the past 20 years, revealed — via social media — last week that she had become a mum.
Beaming out from her Instagram feed Stosur wrote: “It’s been one of the most exciting and happy times of my life. On the 16th of June, my partner Liz gave birth to our beautiful little girl, Genevieve.
“It has been a whirlwind but we could not imagine life without her now. Mum and Evie are doing well and it’s so amazing to be home with them both.”
The post was the first time Stosur had acknowledged her same-sex relationship with Liz Astling, a former physical therapist for the Aussie women’s Federation Cup team, who Stosur began dating back in 2016.
It’s understood the pair met in 2015, however began a relationship several months later, with Astling regularly courtside at Stosur’s matches.
Their union followed Stosur’s previous long-term relationship with former Australian softballer Simone Morrow from 2008-16. (Morrow was present in the Stosur player box during her famous 2011 US Open victory over Serena Williams).
Stosur’s decision to finally open up publicly about her relationship was, according to a friend, due mostly to the fact she would soon be seen pushing a pram around her hometown of Melbourne.
“And obviously there would be questions about that … so that was what prompted the decision to post the announcement on social media,” the source said.
However, another friend close to the Stosur camp said the decision to open up was also fuelled, in part, by the proliferation of female athletes in same-sex relationships opting to live openly and proud in Australia over the past decade.
These have included Stosur’s good friend and Australian Fed Cup teammate Casey Dellacqua, football’s Sam Kerr and AFL’s Erin Phillips.
Stosur’s announcement, at age 36, comes as rumours swirl that she is set to retire from competitive tennis.
The tennis veteran this week declined to comment further on her plans, however a representative said a public statement would be issued in the coming days.
Originally published as Family life: Tennis star Sam Stosur, her partner Liz Astling and their baby