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Melbourne - Melbourne’s Margaret Court Arena has been renamed on Google Maps in the wake of the tennis star’s controversial comments about gay people.
The stadium now appears as “Evonne Goolagong Arena” in some Google searches, in line with Martina Navratilova's recent suggestion that it be renamed in honour of another great Australian player.
Evonne Goolagong Cawley is a seven-time Grand Slam champion who was the first Aboriginal player to represent her country in world tennis.
Navratilova, one of the first prominent gay athletes, criticised the 74-year-old former player-turned-church-pastor over her recent comments about gay people in tennis and transgender children, calling her “sick and dangerous.”
It came after Court said she would avoid flying with Australian airline Qantas because of its support for same-sex marriage. When these comments were challenged Court later said that tennis was “full of lesbians”.
Tennis Australia and the operator of the Margaret Court Arena have so far resisted calls to rename the show court, instead distancing themselves from Court’s views on gay marriage.
Originally known as Show Court One, it was renamed in 2003 as a tribute to Australia’s most successful female tennis player.
Court’s comments have even seen some call for a boycott of the venue during next year’s opening Grand Slam.
A spokesperson for Google was quoted by news.com.au as saying the change was not made by the company.
“The various types of data found in Google Maps come from a wide range of sources, including third-party providers, public sources, and user contributions,” they said.
“This provides a very comprehensive and up-to-date map experience, but we recognise that there may be occasional inaccuracies that could arise from any of those sources.”
