The Australian Open holds a special place in Donna Kelso's heart; it was where she officiated her last match as a chair umpire — the women's final of AO 1998. The Sydneysider has since held an ongoing role as a WTA supervisor, which sees her travel the world and visit incredible locations as the tour traverses the globe. It's the continuation of a long-running connection to tennis for Kelso, who picked up the sport as a child after winning a racquet in a colouring competition, and who progressed to calling lines as a teenager at the NSW Open. She sat down with Viv and Matt to discuss her tennis journey, her trailblazing role as a female gold-badge chair umpire, her best on-court moments as a tennis official, and her famous shoe collection.

AusOpen.com
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Apple Podcasts
Spotify

Host handles:
@Viv_Christie
@MattyAT

The Australian Open holds a special place in Donna Kelso's heart; it was where she officiated her last match as a chair umpire — the women's final of AO 1998. The Sydneysider has since held an ongoing role as a WTA supervisor, which sees her travel the world and visit incredible locations as the tour traverses the globe. It's the continuation of a long-running connection to tennis for Kelso, who picked up the sport as a child after winning a racquet in a colouring competition, and who progressed to calling lines as a teenager at the NSW Open. She sat down with Viv and Matt to discuss her tennis journey, her trailblazing role as a female gold-badge chair umpire, her best on-court moments as a tennis official, and her famous shoe collection.
<a href="https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fausopen.com%2Flisten&amp;data=05%7C01%7CJHoevenaars%40Tennis.com.au%7C39d41d646c2d44fd299008dadcd3bdc3%7C61aa9c8da7734a7c84701dd8062e404a%7C0%7C0%7C638065099215598899%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=Pv9ViyqGlAcwDPKaeTzYZCwHLUzSRqpu%2FU2pwaedzRQ%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-outlook-id="9ca02421-c2af-46d6-a3b9-2d171f32db8f">AusOpen.com</a> <a href="https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1300-the-ao-show-106540123/" data-outlook-id="312a2623-d95a-4814-8226-075cf28c9f8d">iHeart</a> <a href="https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpodcasts.apple.com%2Fau%2Fpodcast%2Fthe-ao-show%2Fid1447078646&amp;data=05%7C01%7CJHoevenaars%40Tennis.com.au%7C39d41d646c2d44fd299008dadcd3bdc3%7C61aa9c8da7734a7c84701dd8062e404a%7C0%7C0%7C638065099215598899%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=Hibqry6n4Q%2FepVo1I9kTOYduhyOnk7yK%2BhC8SDzyEqM%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-outlook-id="e0e978e3-7b35-4601-9f67-73f95dfbd151">Apple Podcasts</a> <a href="https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fopen.spotify.com%2Fshow%2F5iZNWXsa7TQNs88F0PAmB1%3Fsi%3D720671f241a14afe&amp;data=05%7C01%7CJHoevenaars%40Tennis.com.au%7C39d41d646c2d44fd299008dadcd3bdc3%7C61aa9c8da7734a7c84701dd8062e404a%7C0%7C0%7C638065099215598899%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=xWAr%2BGz5LJ0OigwN9Irgx13SdZ4iMSGRCvT9clKZDVo%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-outlook-id="9691d4f8-0eac-4556-b624-2226e4e92ac7">Spotify</a> 
Host handles: <a href="https://x.com/Viv_Christie?s=20" data-outlook-id="e0b7df87-01dd-4e62-9db0-8980ac439965">@Viv_Christie</a> <a href="https://x.com/MattyAT?s=20" data-outlook-id="96340f99-d244-4a9f-8821-fed60e4c8a4d">@MattyAT</a>

Get the latest from the Australian Open each day of the main draw in just 30 minutes! Then follow the tours through the year with weekly episodes covering all the big events, including Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open.

Get the latest from the Australian Open each day of the main draw in just 30 minutes! Then follow the tours through the year with weekly episodes covering all the big events, including Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open.

The Tennis

The Sit-Down with Donna Kelso

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/278ec3ed-677b-4fc5-a721-b2330048e9c9/transcript

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