Navratilova calls for renaming of Margaret Court Arena

When Margaret Court doubled down on her recent statements against same-sex marriage and LGBT people, one of the responses was Martina Navratilova’s request to rename Margaret Court Arena, where Australian Open matches commence in Melbourne.

In an open letter to the Sydney Morning Herald, published this week, Navratilova, winner of 18 major singles titles alone, called for Margaret Court Arena to be rechristened Evonne Goolagong Arena.

Navratilova’s open letter catalyzed a petition, and within a week of it being published, the Change.org form had more than 7,000 signatures. One of the most outspoken stars in tennis history, Navratilova came out as gay in the 1980s and employed Renee Richards, a transgender pro, as her coach for a period of time.

“We celebrate free speech, but that doesn't mean it is free of consequences–not punishment, but consequences,” Navratilova wrote. “What I did not know about until now were the unabashed racist statements she made in the '70s about apartheid in South Africa,” she added. “Saying that South Africa dealt with the ‘situation’ [meaning people of color] much better than anywhere else in the world, particularly the US.”

With those words, Navratilova referenced Court’s quotes that appeared in a book about Arthur Ashe:

The verbal volleying between Navratilova and Court will likely continue into early next year. If any changes to the name of Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne are to take effect, that would need to be work done well before the Australian Open begins.

Follow Jon on Twitter @jonscott9.