Margaret Court

IMPACT. The development of the arena has added a new level of efficiency and flexibility to the precinct and means that during the Australian Open the main courts are not disrupted by extreme weather conditions, and there is greater connectivity to Rod Laver Arena.

Margaret Court

The arena has large areas of glazing which maximises views to the surrounding precinct and parkland and exposes the internal architecture and spaces to passers-by. Furthermore, the venue features back-of-house access and courtside VIP seating to fully immerse fans in the event experience.

Tennis great Margaret Court fired back at her former on-court rival Billie Jean King, who recently called for a name change to Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne on the basis that it's a public facility and Court is anti-LGBT. Now Court, who skipped this year's Australian Open where some of the matches were played at the arena named for her, has spoken out about King's comments, according to theDaily Mail.

Her stance has spurred the creation of a Facebook group, "Rainbow Flags Over Margaret Court Arena," which is urging spectators to display rainbow-colored gay pride banners at the show court that bears her name during the Australian Open, which begins Monday.

Kerryn Phelps, former president of the Australian Medical Association and one of Australia's most influential gay spokeswomen, has called on the Victoria state government and Tennis Australia to drop Court's name from the 6,000-seat show court arena named in her honor.

But the design team, NH Architecture + Populous, believes this has ultimately provided a positive influence, ensuring the team is both focused and exacting in the way it has planned and executed the project. The court position and seating bowl were already fixed, so a great deal of work was undertaken in planning the building, particularly the re-planning of circulation networks for spectators and back of house staff.

Margaret Smith began to dominate youth tennis in Australia at the age of eight. As a 17-year-old she won her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. This win launched her international career, gaining her invites to all the top tournaments. She would follow up her first Australian in 1960, with six straight wins at Australia. Two years after her first Major win and a year after her second, she would win the French Open in 1962. It would be the first of five wins on the clay courts of Paris. After her triumph at the Roland Garros, she also went on to win the 1962 US Open, meaning that by the end of the year, aged just 19, she held three of the four Major titles. By the age of 20, she had won Wimbledon to complete the set. 041b061a72