An Australian tennis legend has doubled down on her anti-LGBT comments, claiming that transgender children were the “work of the devil” and homosexuality is the result of sexual abuse.
The 24-times Grand Slams winner, has sparked controversy this month after saying she will boycott Qantas Airways because of its support for same-sex marriage.
In a follow-up interview with a Christian outlet, Court doubled down on her comments, comparing LGBT activists to Hitler and said that transgender children were influenced by the devil.
Margaret Court is the female tennis player with the highest number of single Grand Slams, 24 (Evening Standard/Getty Images)
She said: “We’re not against the people.
““They’re human beings and 92 percent, they say in America, have either been abused in some form sexually or emotionally at an early age for them to even be this way.”
Of transgender people she added: “You can think, ‘Oh, I’m a boy’, and it will affect your emotions and feelings and everything else.
“That’s all the devil… but that’s what Hitler did and that’s what communism did — got the mind of the children. And there’s a whole plot in our nation, and in the nations of the world to get the minds of the children.”
In the same interview, she said that tennis is full of lesbians because younger players have been converted by older stars.
She said: “Tennis is full of lesbians even when I was playing there was only a couple there, but those couple that led, that took young ones into parties and things … because they like to be around heroes.
“And you know, what you get at the top is often what you’ll get right through that sport.”
The former player, now Christian pastor, also claimed that homosexuality will destroy a person’s life.
“We’re here to help them (gay people) overcome. We’re not against the people,” she said.
Australian Tennis player Sam Stosur labelled her compatriot as “crazy” after the new comments she made today.
“It’s pretty obvious that the whole tennis community out here has pretty much the same opinion and we’re going to all stand by that,” Stosur said.
After the news of her Qantas boycott, Court has declared that she was being discriminated against and bullied by gay people.
Many international tennis players, including lesbian Martina Navratilova, have disapproved of the former legend’s comments.
Navratilova called for the Margaret Court Arena in Australia to be renamed ahead of suggestions that players will boycott the venue.
Andy Murray, currently ranked #1, has recently condemned Court’s statements and has suggested that he may refuse to play on the Margaret Court Arena.
Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull, who has been criticised for blocking same-sex marriage, has defended Court, saying she should be celebrated for her tennis achievements rather than been criticised for her views.
