Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has dismissed calls to change the name of Margaret Court Arena amid anger over the tennis great's comments about same-sex couples.
Speaking on 3AW radio, Mr Turnbull said: “Margaret Court Arena celebrates Margaret Court the tennis player.
“She’s one of the greatest greats of tennis and that's why the arena is named after her."
In to The West Australian, Court expressed her regret “that Qantas has become an active promoter for same-sex marriage”.
Now an ordained minister at Perth’s Victory Life Church, she said while she was proud “to promote the kangaroo tail throughout the world”, the airline’s support for marriage equality leaves her with no choice “but to use other airlines where possible for my extensive travelling”.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has been vocal about her views of homosexuality, calling it a “choice” in an interview with The New York Times in January this year.
It's led to clashes with other players including Australian Casey Dellacqua, who recently tweeted “enough is enough” in response to a letter Court had written about her family.
Referring to the birth of Dellacqua’s child in a same-sex relationship, Court said she was saddened “that this baby has seemingly been deprived of a father”.
“Personally, I have nothing against Casey Dellacqua or her ‘partner’”, she wrote.
“I simply want to champion the rights of the family over the rights of the individual to engineer social norms and produce children into their relationships.”
Retired tennis players Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova, who are both openly gay, have also criticised the 74-year-old’s opinions. Navratilova has also called for Melbourne’s Margaret Court Arena, which hosts the Australian Open, to be renamed.
In a statement, Tennis Australia said while it respects Court’s success in the sport, “her personal views are her own, and do not align with Tennis Australia's values of equality, inclusion and diversity”.
Melbourne and Olympic Parks also shared messages on Twitter stating that they do not support Court’s comments.
Court’s open letter came just weeks after Qantas CEO Alan Joyce had a pie smashed into his face during a business breakfast, in protest over same-sex marriage.
Mr Joyce, who is gay, is a supporter of gay rights, and was one of 20 executives to sign a letter to the Prime Minister calling for marriage equality.
Australia’s other major domestic airline, Virgin Australia, also backs marriage equality.
-- with AAP
