“He beat me with a belt and my mother watched in silence” – When Jelena Dokic revealed gut-wrenching details of violence and abuse by her father

Damir also did not approve of Jelena's relationship with Tin Bikic.

“He beat me with a belt and my mother watched in silence” – When Jelena Dokic revealed gut-wrenching details of violence and abuse by her father

Damir Dokic and Jelena Dokic

Former World No. 4 and retired Australian Pro Jelena Dokic recently came forward with a grueling tale of her battle with depression and mental health issues which almost led to her committing suicide a couple of months ago. Fortunately, the player did not take the final step and sought medical help, which has now given her hope for normal life and a belief that she will come back a strong person after overcoming depression.

Jelena’s struggles with mental health could be coming from a long battle of having suffered abuse and violence from her father, Damir Dokic. Damir had a big influence and was heavily involved in her professional life and Jelena eventually broke free when she left her house. The decision to leave the house was also not an easy one for her, and she admitted years later that it also affected her mental health.

Dokic in her autobiography ‘Unbreakable’, was candid when she revealed how her father had abused and hit her upon losing matches and dominated her for a long time. One such incident was when Jelena lost to Conchita Martinez in Toronto and her father humiliated her in front of her mother.

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He yelled at me and beat me with a belt in the bathroom. He dragged me by the ears, spat on me, and then made me stand naked in the middle of a hotel room for hours. My mother watched it all in silence.
wrote Jelena

Jelena Dokic on her father’s take on her relationship with Tin Bikic

Damir also did not approve of Jelena’s relationship with Tin Bikic, a Croatian national, with Damir having ugly feelings towards Croatians.

Jelena Dokic, Tin Bikic, Damir Dokic - father of Jelena
L- Jelena Dokic and Tin Bikic, R- Damir Dokic – father of Jelena
In his (her father's) eyes, it was the worst thing I could do. He would have preferred me to be with a terrorist than with a Croat. The most difficult period in my life was when I left my family in 2005 and due to great pressure, I went to live in Zagreb with my boyfriend Tin Bikić. The feeling when you lose your family is terrible and all that left great consequences on my health, nervous breakdown and being depressed for years.
Jelena Dokic recalled

In an earlier interview, Jelena had expressed that there were times when she thought she would never take the racket in her hands again, and Tin was with her in the most difficult moments. The two of them had lived through a lot together in the last years of the relationship. She mentioned that she was in hell, and she came back with him again.

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