In the stands, during Novak Djokovic's matches, eyes automatically turn on her. She is Jelena Ristic, the wife of the semi-finalist of Roland-Garros, and number 3 in world tennis. The couple said yes nine years ago on the peninsula of Stevi Stefan, Montenegro, and has been (almost) in perfect love for more than a decade.
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One marriage and two children
Novak and Jelena Djokovic leave a dinner hosted by the Novak Djokovic Foundation. (London, July 8, 2013.) Abaca
Jelena and "Djoko" met in high school, in Belgrade, in their native Serbia. In this cruel time when the loves of youth rarely last more than the time of a slow. Despite the distance and the many movements of the player - competition obliges - the couple manages to thwart the predictions, and to silence the bad tongues. In 2014, three months after their quasi-princely wedding, the cost of which is estimated at 500,000 euros, the duo welcomes Stefan, their first child. The blondinet has, since then, grown well. Big brother of a little Tara born in September 2017, he now also appears in the stands alongside Novak Djokovic's technical staff.
At 36, however, Jelena is far from considering herself a simple "tennis player's wife". To understand this, just read his Twitter bio: "Co-founder and director of the Novak Djokovic Foundation". This charity works for disadvantaged Serbian children, especially those who do not have access to education. Very followed on social networks (630,000 on Instagram; 159,000 on Twitter), the Serb posts her life in pictures. Family holidays in London, mountain excursions, hairdressing tutorials, boxing lessons... Everything is a pretext to be shared. Including the hectic daily life of his two beloved poodles, Tesla and Pierre.
Entrepreneur and philanthropist
On Instagram, Jelena Djokovic also puts her notoriety at the service of noble causes. As his previous presentation demonstrated very well: "Sharing my love for education, philanthropy, work, animals, sports and healthy food."
To establish this status, the young woman launched in 2015 the magazine Original. It gives the floor to personalities, invited to express themselves on various subjects. The goal, explained the woman entrepreneur in an article published on the Novak Djokovic Foundation website (the circle is closed), is "to interest students in culture, education, arts, sports and sciences". The first issue featured an interview with Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of the American edition of Vogue magazine, in other words THE living guru of fashion. This universe, the wife of "Djoko" is particularly fond of. Her wedding dress was designed by Sarah Burton, the artistic designer of Alexander McQueen, who designed Kate Middleton's in 2011.
Faced with rumors of infidelity
Jelena Djokovic in the stands of the US Open. (New York, September 5, 2018.) Julian Finney / AFP
Jelena's life, a fairy tale? Not quite. 2017 marks the black year of Novak Djokovic. No Grand Slam or Masters 1000 on the clock, the tennis player struggles to maintain the level. Behind the scenes, it is said that his couple is floundering. In question: the alleged infidelities of the tennis champion. John McEnroe goes there at the very time of his little comment. "He has problems off court with his family," he said. If you're distracted by something, you're not the same player anymore. The person who immediately comes to mind when I think of Novak is not a tennis player but a golfer: Tiger Woods. He had problems with his wife, he went off the rails, now he's a shadow of his former self."
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Despite many denials, it is clear that rumors are struggling to run out of steam. This leads the main interested party to break his silence in June 2020. "I don't read or follow the media, most of the time I don't," he said in an interview with Blic. So I'm not upset. I understand that it is more interesting for people to read "Nole and Jelena are divorcing" than "Nole and Jelena are very much in love". But it doesn't affect Jelena, and neither do I, because we really love each other." Then to add: "He is the most complete person I know. Open and supportive. I grow with her, just like I try to make her grow with me."
No more gossip, three years later, Jelena is still there. Ready to cheer on her husband from the stands. And it is a safe bet that she will once again be present, this Friday Porte d'Auteuil, to attend the semi-final of Roland-Garros, which opposes Novak Djokovic to the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.