‘No shame’: Jelena Dokic’s powerful message about appearance before weight loss

Former tennis champion Jelena Dokic has declared she feels “no shame” over how she looked before her recent weight loss.

Tennis champion Jelena Dokic has declared she feels “no shame” over how she looked before her recent weight loss.

The former world number four, who now works as a commentator, was repeatedly trolled for her appearance, prompting her to take control of her health. As a result, Dokic lost 30kg.

But, in an Instagram post on Tuesday, the 41-year-old said she was still the same person regardless of her size – and that she’s just as proud of who she was 10 months ago as she is of herself now.

“My size and number on the scale doesn’t define me,” Dokic wrote alongside a composite photo of her late last year, and a more recent picture of her commentating the US Open.

Jelena Dokic isn’t ashamed of how she looked before weight loss. Picture: Instagram/@dokic_jelena

“My kindness, hard work, humility, loyalty, good heart, resilience, strength in (the) face (of) adversity and fighting spirit does.

“And that’s what really matters.”

At your funeral, Dokic added, “nobody … will ever talk about your size”.

“They will talk about who you were as a person.”

She urged her followers not to “ever judge anyone and don’t ever base your opinion on others based on their size”.

“Because then you are just not a good person and it’s not kind. So if you can be anything, be kind,” Dokic wrote.

Dokic lost 30kg. Picture: Instagram/@dokic_jelena

“That’s why I am not ashamed to show the picture on the left,” she continued.

“I will hold my head up high whether I am a size two or size 20 and nobody will shame me into feeling bad about myself and who I am especially nobody that sits behind a keyboard or phone and takes time out of their life to write something negative to someone else especially someone that you don’t even know.

“And the same goes if you see me or anyone else in person and you judge us and base your opinion of us based on our size. That’s just terrible.

“And what you think of me and others based on size says everything about you.”

Dokic revealed in an interview with Australian Women’s Weekly that she reached her breaking point in 2023. Picture: Instagram/@dokic_jelena

Dokic revealed in an earlier interview with the Australian Women’s Weekly that she reached a breaking point with her body in 2023.

At the time, her busy schedule meant she was opting for “pick me up foods” on the go, leading to weight gain, high blood pressure and cholesterol.

“I pushed myself to the limit,” she told the publication in September, when she appeared on the magazine’s cover.

“I have an extremely unpredictable, hectic lifestyle. Sometimes my days are nights, and my nights are days. I’m up at 3am for flights, going to bed at 3am after commentary.

“I love working – I’m a workaholic, I’d say – (I) took on every single opportunity because I love what I do, but I had no time.”

Originally published as ‘No shame’: Jelena Dokic’s powerful message about appearance before weight loss