- Fox is a Nine commentator at the Australian Open
- Also worked on the Today show after the Paris Olympics
Three-time Olympic gold medalist and flag bearer Jess Fox has turned heads with a memorable entrance to the Australian Open, arriving in style, by kayak.
Fox, known for her dominance in canoe slalom events, this week posted a clip on social media of herself on the Yarra River outside Melbourne Park.
‘How do you get to the Aus Open?’ she says in the clip.
“I’m just paddling here.”
Fox then used the caption: ‘Heading to play some padel?’
Padel is a cross between tennis and squash, played on small indoor courts with softer balls, where you serve underhand and can use the walls to bounce the ball back onto the playing surface.
Jess Fox made a sweet entrance at the Australian Open, arriving in style in a kayak
The Aussie Olympic champion (pictured at this week’s Australian Open) works the Grand Slam as a color commentator for Nine
The sport is showcased alongside pickleball at the Australian Open.
Fox has no experience in tennis, but the Australian champion has been selected, along with swimmer Ariarne Titmus, to be part of the Nine network’s coverage.
“I have always been a tennis fan and to have the opportunity to participate in the Australian Open in this capacity is very exciting,” Titmus told News Corp.
“The AO embraces Australian culture and our love of sport as a nation. It will be a new and challenging experience to be on the other side of the microphone, but I am very grateful for it.
‘I am [also] I look forward to working with a great team and broadening my skills beyond the pool.”
Titmus, who won gold in the women’s 400 meter freestyle and the 4×200 meter freestyle relay at the Paris Games, does not have to look far when it comes to valuable tips behind the camera.
Fox is pictured (right) watching a United Cup match in December
Her father Steve is a sports presenter for Seven News in Brisbane.
Nine has also lured back ‘Super Brat’ John McEnroe, at a venue where he was infamously disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct as a player in the 1990 tournament.
McEnroe, along with compatriot Jim Courier and Australians Todd Woodbridge and Jelena Dokic, will be key to Nine’s reporting.
Other confirmed commentators include homegrown tennis identities such as Lleyton Hewitt, Sam Stosur, Dylan Alcott, John Millman, Casey Dellacqua and Alicia Molik.