Out-of-control tennis dad is banned from EVERY court in Australia for three years after knocking out another parent during a match and shouting racist abuse
- A Melbourne man has been banned from every tennis court in country
- It came after the father knocked out a rival at a under 14s tennis match
- The fiery father also hurled racist abuse and personal insults at the other man
- It’s the second time the out-of-control dad has been suspended over behaviour
A Melbourne man has been banned from every tennis court in the country after a racist tirade and fist fight so bad Tennis Australia (TA) called it ‘one of the more serious instances of offending’ they’ve seen.
The man, referred to as ‘Mr H’ in an appeal to the government’s National Sports Tribunal, was banned for three years, one of which is suspended, after knocking a fellow parent out at an under 14s tennis match at the Caroline Springs Tennis Centre in Melbourne’s far west in December 2021.
According to the appeal, which was rejected, ‘Mr H’ and a ‘Mr K’ had an argument at at match between their respective sons before the former sparked a ‘heated argument and physical altercation’ over a point in the match.
After hurling a number of insults and unspecified ‘racial abuse’ at his rival, the fiery father then hit him in the face, which caused him to fall to the ground, where he remained unconscious for several minutes.
One man has been banned from every tennis court in Australia after knocking a rival parent out and hurling racist abuse at him
A witness referred to as Mr Pettitt testified that despite the force of the blow, ‘Mr K’ was ready to fight when he woke up.
‘Mr K pushed Mr H three times and before the third time put the items in his hand on the ground and squared up to [Mr H] like he wanted a fight,’ Mr Pettitt told the tribunal.
‘He [Mr K] had his fists clenched, with his hands up around his head like a boxer. He acted aggressively’.
Despite not provoking the fight, ‘Mr K’s’ actions earned him a year’s suspension, six months of which were suspended.
Caroline Springs Tennis Centre, where the violent incident occurred, and led to a tennis dad being banned for three years
Police and ambulance crews had to attend, with many bystanders and witnesses giving evidence against the man who threw the punch and launched into a racist tirade.
The heavily redacted arbitration document from the National Sports Tribunal upheld the original decision to ban ‘Mr H’, saying his conduct at a place where there were many young children present was unacceptable.
‘Mr H’s conduct of harassment, physical abuse, emotional abuse and vilification amounted to not only severe breaches of TA’s MPP [Member Protection Policy] but also one of the more serious instances of offending reported to TA,’ said a submission by Tennis Australia’s lawyer, Daniel Stuk.
The original three-year ban – which means ‘Mr H’ cannot enter any tennis court in Australia – was entirely appropriate, according to the tribunal.
Tennis Australia (headquarters in Melbourne pictured) said the violent attack was one of the worst they had seen reported to them
M H previously received a suspended six-month ban for another vile incident – with the National Sports Tribunal’s arbitrator saying it meant he hadn’t learned his lesson.
‘A six-month suspended sentence had previously been imposed by Tennis Victoria on Mr H for similar conduct, but Mr H still did not seem to accept that such behaviour is completely unacceptable,’ arbitrator Mr Simon Phillips said.
Caroline Springs Tennis Centre president was stunned by the event, saying he had never encountered such a thuggish incident.
‘I have never seen anything like it so savage,’ Stow told the Herald Sun.
Victoria Police said they had not ruled out bringing criminal charges against ‘Mr H’.
‘Police have spoken to a number of people in relation to the matter and the investigation is ongoing,’ the spokesman said.
Advertisement