Tennis Great to serve on ILC board

“It’s never too late to achieve things in your life, especially if you have a passion and strongly believe in what you are doing,” Evonne said.

“It was only recently I found out that I had actually been ranked as the number one women’s tennis player in the world all the way back in 1971 & 1976, so it’s definitely never too late!” she said with a laugh.

Evonne, from the Wiradjuri people of south-western New South Wales, is the newest appointment to the ILC’s Board of Directors, replacing outgoing director Norma Ingram.

“I accepted the appointment to the ILC’s Board because I have always been a strong supporter of Indigenous people working to help themselves, and that really is what the ILC is all about,” Evonne said.

“I am the type of person who wants to immerse myself in meaningful actions for the benefit of Indigenous people.

“I am particularly excited about the ILC’s National Indigenous Development Centre project, on the site of the former Redfern Public School, as it is a blend of developing sporting excellence, leadership and building self-esteem in young people.

“This is exactly the type of work I have been involved in for many years now and working with young people, particularly young Indigenous people, is what makes me happy.

“I want to continue to assist young people and help create employment for young Indigenous people, and the appointment to the ILC’s Board just seemed to be a natural extension of that work.

“As I travel around the country, I intend to visit ILC properties so I can better understand the potential of these acquisitions to deliver tangible benefits to young people through training and employment,” Evonne said.

The new ILC Director has had a glittering international sporting career. She has been Australian Sportsman Of The Year and Australian Of The Year, and in 1988 was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Evonne served on the National Indigenous Advisory Committee to the Sydney Olympics.

In her tennis career, Evonne won 92 professional tournaments, was a finalist in 18 Grand Slam events, winning Wimbledon twice, the Australian Open four times, the French Open once and was runner up four years in succession at the US Open. At her second Wimbledon triumph in 1980, Evonne became the first mother to win since Dorothy Lambert Chambers in 1914.

By 1990, she was determined to expand her knowledge of her Indigenous heritage and this, along with the death of her mother in 1991, prompted Evonne and her family to leave their USA base in Florida and return to live in Australia.

During 1998–2005, Tennis Australia appointed Evonne as a “tennis ambassador” and together they formed the national Milo Evonne Goolagong Getting Started Programme to increase female participation in tennis throughout Australia.

Since 2005, Evonne in partnership with the Indigenous Sports Foundation, has run the Goolagong National Development Camp for Indigenous youngsters who have the potential to become professional players, coaches or administrators.

‘land matters’ summer edition 2008