SPORTS BROADCASTER Clare Balding has dismissed controversial comments made by former tennis star Margaret Court, regarding her views about homosexuality.
Court was heavily criticised in recent days for saying that she would avoid flying with Qantas in protest against the airline’s support of same-sex marriage.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion — and Christian pastor — received further backlash today by claiming that “tennis is full of lesbians,” and said that transgender children are the work of “the devil.”
Balding, a respected sports broadcaster who is gay, has been covering major tennis events including Wimbledon for twenty years.
Advertisement
She said that Court’s comments about homosexuality are ‘irrelevant.’
I slightly feel about Margaret Court the way I do about Peter Alliss when he makes comments about women — it’s irrelevant. I don’t care what Margaret Court thinks. I really don’t care, because she is so in the minority and it’s so outdated,” she told The42 at BT Ireland’s ‘The Difference is You’ event in Dublin.
“I think she becomes a laughing stock and I’m glad she says it out loud because then she gets the full whiplash of people’s reaction. I would not give her anymore time than I would Nigel Farage.
“I would not give her anymore time or credit than I would give him, which is none.”
Balding said she was tempted to tell Court about her marriage to long-term partner Alice Arnold, when the pair met at a lunch recently.
I was sitting next to Margaret Court at a lunch not that long ago. Her husband was the other side and I was so tempted to say that I was married to my wife.
“I was really tempted to go the full hog, but I just thought that I haven’t got the time to deal with this right now. I was working and I was literally just popping into the lunch, so I just didn’t have time for a fight.”
Balding went on to pay tribute to tennis legends including Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King for their efforts in creating a welcoming environment for gay people within the sport.
“I think women’s tennis deserves an awful lot of credit for being as open and non-homophobic as it is. That’s been a big change.
“Martina Navratilova had to face a hell of a lot more. There was a lack of sponsorship deals and all of that kind of thing.
I think she and Billie Jean King did an awful lot to create a world in which lesbians feel very safe and comfortable. The same is true in football and in hockey, and I suspect in women’s cricket and women’s rugby.
She added: ”I wish the men’s version of those games could look and learn from it actually, because it has absolutely no impact on their ability to bond together as a team.
“There are no chants from the crowds saying anything negative about anyone’s sexuality in women’s sport, and it’s why Margaret Court stands out as being such an odd fish. It makes me laugh.
But I wish I could say that about men’s sport. I wish someone like her would be a laughing stock, but it wouldn’t be in football.”
Award Winning Journalist, broadcaster and author, Clare Balding joined a host of inspirational guests to discuss diversity in the workplace at a special lunch to celebrate BT Diversity Week at ‘The Difference is You’ event which took place at the Aviva Stadium.
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
'I was sitting next to Margaret Court and I was so tempted to say that I was married to my wife'
SPORTS BROADCASTER Clare Balding has dismissed controversial comments made by former tennis star Margaret Court, regarding her views about homosexuality.
Court was heavily criticised in recent days for saying that she would avoid flying with Qantas in protest against the airline’s support of same-sex marriage.
She also remarked that marriage should be “a union between a man and a woman as stated in the Bible.”
The 24-time Grand Slam champion — and Christian pastor — received further backlash today by claiming that “tennis is full of lesbians,” and said that transgender children are the work of “the devil.”
Balding, a respected sports broadcaster who is gay, has been covering major tennis events including Wimbledon for twenty years.
She said that Court’s comments about homosexuality are ‘irrelevant.’
“I think she becomes a laughing stock and I’m glad she says it out loud because then she gets the full whiplash of people’s reaction. I would not give her anymore time than I would Nigel Farage.
“I would not give her anymore time or credit than I would give him, which is none.”
Balding said she was tempted to tell Court about her marriage to long-term partner Alice Arnold, when the pair met at a lunch recently.
“I was really tempted to go the full hog, but I just thought that I haven’t got the time to deal with this right now. I was working and I was literally just popping into the lunch, so I just didn’t have time for a fight.”
Balding went on to pay tribute to tennis legends including Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King for their efforts in creating a welcoming environment for gay people within the sport.
“I think women’s tennis deserves an awful lot of credit for being as open and non-homophobic as it is. That’s been a big change.
“Martina Navratilova had to face a hell of a lot more. There was a lack of sponsorship deals and all of that kind of thing.
She added: ”I wish the men’s version of those games could look and learn from it actually, because it has absolutely no impact on their ability to bond together as a team.
“There are no chants from the crowds saying anything negative about anyone’s sexuality in women’s sport, and it’s why Margaret Court stands out as being such an odd fish. It makes me laugh.
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
Former star Margaret Court says tennis is ‘full of lesbians’
Sport Ireland chief makes funding warning amid Irish boxing row
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Clare Balding Irrelevant Margaret Court