Unbreakable – The Jelena Dokic Story

Child abuse, especially in elite sports.

In a sports obsessed country, with close to two million children participating in organized sport outside of school hours, we will raise awareness of the child abuse that sports can cause, condone or encourage. Despite evidence to the contrary, including in tennis, soccer and cricket cases documented by the Child Abuse Royal Commission, most reactions in sports are still that it does not happen, that it’s someone else’s responsibility or that they are isolated incidents. It must change.

That authorities across all sports enact better safeguards for children in their ultimate care (amateurs or professionals);
An end to the societal attitude of not interfering in an other’s family’s business. If a child is clearly at risk, one must act;
Greater empathy for the athletes who are derided in the media for what is often described as ‘difficult’ behavior. Jelena’s case shows that there may be much more at play;
There are no uniform reporting standards on child abuse in Australia, varying from state to state, making it extremely hard for academics to do the research needed to advocate for policy change. We would like to see such standards enacted.

We have the support of Tennis Australia. Tennis Australia are assisting in securing the footage we need to make the film, and may assist in getting the introductions needed in the international and national tennis world to produce the film. We have also secured the support of the World Player’s Association.

Stop being bystanders
Advocate for children in sports, especially elite child athletes.
Put pressure on politicians and sports bodies to enact change