Margaret Court says tennis is "full of lesbians" and suggests top gay players "led young ones" during her days on the pro circuit.
The 74-year-old Hall of Famer, who is now a Christian minister in Perth, Australia, made the claims of pervasive homosexuality on the WTA Tour during an interview wtih Vision Christian Radio station.
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"I mean, tennis is full of lesbians, because even when I was playing there was only a couple there, but those couple that led took young ones into parties and things," Court said in comments published by AFP. "And you know, what you get at the top is often what you'll get right through that sport."
Reigning Roland Garros champion Garbine Muguruza was asked about Court's comments today and replied: "Quite honestly, I really don't give a damn what she says."
The former world No. 1 generated headlines last week when she criticized the CEO of Qantas Airlines for supporting marriage equality.
Court, who has been a vocal opponent of same-sex marriage for years, has received a backlash from some players, including Hall of Famer Martina Navratilova and Richel Hogenkamp, who have called for Tennis Australia to remove the tennis legend's name from the Australian Open's Margaret Court Arena.
The 24-time Grand Slam singles champion says she is not against gay people and insists her comments are her way of trying "to help them overcome."
"We're there to help them overcome," Court 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."
Following his French Open first-round victory yesterday, world No. 1 Andy Murray was asked about the Court controversy and said he stands for equal rights for all people and opposes the tennis legend's stance.
"I don't see why anyone has a problem with two people who love each other getting married," Murray told the media in Paris. "If it's two men, two women, that's great. I don't see why it should matter.
"It's not anyone else's business. Everyone, in my opinion, should have the same rights. I don't agree with that (Court's stance)."
Asked if he would support a 2018 player boycott of Margaret Court Arena, the former Australian Open finalist said any action players take should be decided before the tournament begins next January.
"If something was to be done, I think it would be a lot more beneficial to do it before the tournament starts," Murray said. "For players to be in a position where you're in a slam and boycotting playing on the court, I think would potentially cause a lot of issues.
"So I think if something was going to be happen and the players come to an agreement, if they think the name should be changed or whatever, that should be decided before the event starts. But I would imagine a lot of the players would be pretty offended. So we'll see what happens."