Novak Djokovic is one of the biggest tennis stars in the world and has been married to his wife, Jelena Djokovic (formerly Ristic), for several years now.
Fans of Novak have likely spotted Jelena sitting in the audience at several of his matches, but she is way more than just a tennis champion’s wife.
As a humanitarian working to better the lives of disadvantaged kids in Serbia and a mom of two kids, Jelena keeps herself busy, something fans can get a glimpse of on her Instagram page.
So who is Novak’s longtime love? Here’s everything to know about Jelena Djokovic.
Jelena and Novak were together for several years before getting married in 2014. In fact, the two have known each other since they were young — they attended the same high school together in their home country of Serbia.
The pair first got together while attending and playing tennis at school, and dated for eight years before getting engaged in 2013 in Monte Carlo, where Novak was living at the time.
Jelena and Novak were together as Novak’s tennis career was taking off, but Jelena had her own studies to focus on. She once told Hello! that she had always wanted to go to university abroad, adding that since her parents weren’t able to fund that kind of education, it “entailed me being the very best student in elementary and high school, in order to win scholarships.”
Her work paid off, and she ended up going to Bocconi University in Milan, where she studied luxury brand management.
Despite the long distance and their busy schedules, the pair found a way to make their romance work.
“Us getting together was like science fiction almost,” Jelena told Hello!. “I was a student barely getting by, and he was a very young tennis player who also had no money to spare on expensive trips.”
“Airplanes were, at the time, something utterly out of our reach,” she continued. “We contrived and devised these plans how to meet, how to make our relationship work.” When Jelena was done with college, the two moved in together in Monte Carlo, where she got a temporary job at an oil company.
Not long after moving to Monte Carlo with Novak, Jelena ended up leaving her job at the oil company, telling Hello! she was at the office for so long that it was negatively affecting her relationship with Novak. “At certain point, Novak told me, ‘Darling, we cannot go on like this,’ ” she said.
After leaving her position, Jelena went on to act as the National Director of the couple’s charity organization, the Novak Djokovic Foundation. As she explained to HuffPost, Novak and his family created the organization in 2007 to help disadvantaged children in Serbia by giving them access to early childhood education.
Jelena has dabbled in some modeling as well. In 2013, she was announced as the face of lingerie and swimwear brand Figleaves.com.
Jelena and Novak tied the knot in 2014, a little less than a week after Novak won his second Wimbledon championship. The ceremony took place in Sveti Stefan, a small coastal town in Montenegro.
PEOPLE reported at the time that the nuptials took place outdoors. The couple said their vows in a gazebo surrounded by pine trees while 100 guests looked on.
Jelena was pregnant with the couple’s first child when they tied the knot. On Oct. 22, 2014, she gave birth to their son, Stefan Djokovic.
Jelena gave birth to their daughter, Tara Djokovic, in September 2017. In an Instagram post announcing Tara’s birth, Novak wrote, “Very happy and proud to welcome our little girl Tara to our home. Jelena and I have been hand in hand on their journey and as a man, I have to send my love and admiration to every single women out there for going through so much pain and effort to create life, to bring life and raise a human being … what a blessing to have an opportunity to be a parent!”
He added, “Jelena and Tara are my angels, and Stefan is a proud big brother who wants to take part in baby chores.”
The couple’s family also includes two dogs — poodles named Pierre and Tesla that Jelena regularly show off on Instagram. In 2019, Pierre turned 11, and Jelena shared a tribute for the pup, saying, “forever our baby, forever my first boy.”
As the biggest male tennis star in the world, Novak lives an extremely busy lifestyle — and Jelena is there for him every step of the way. She once told the Daily Mail that although she gets “passionate” while watching Novak play, she has to be cautious about showing too much emotion.
“I have to be careful as I don’t want to get too emotional and distract Novak. It’s about what the guys want,” she says. “We don’t want them to see us get emotional. When I’m at home watching him on the TV, I get even more passionate because I know the cameras aren’t on me.”
She went on to say, “My job is to keep Novak calm and relaxed before his matches. We are emotional partners. The emotional support we give to each other is very important. It’s the same for me as well. He is very supportive and encouraging of the work that I do.”
On July 10, 2022, Jelena supported Novak during his Wimbledon win on the same day the pair celebrated their wedding anniversary. To mark the milestone, she posted a carousel of sweet photos of the couple throughout the years along with the caption, “8 years married out of 17 years of growing up together ☺️ .”
Later that same day, Jelena shared a picture of the two hugging in the stands at Wimbledon. “CHAMPION OF THE WIMBLEDON 2022 ,” she wrote alongside the snap.
Jelena celebrated her husband again on Jan. 29, 2023, after he won his 10th Australian Open and 22nd Grand Slam title. She shared a photo on Instagram of him kissing the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup along with the caption “Bravo ljubavi! ❤️❤️❤️❤️,” which translates to “Well done love.”
The following month, Jelena also supported her husband when he broke the record for most weeks as the world’s number-one tennis player on Feb. 27, 2023.
“Celebrating Novak’s tennis LOVE AFFAIR that has been going on for quite some time…. And everyone knows about it (and wife doesn’t mind at all lol) @djokernole,” she wrote along with a video of the couple slow dancing. “NOVAK IS THE BEST TENNIS PLAYER FOR THE LONGEST TIME IN THE HISTORY OF TENNIS ☺️ (mike drop )#378 weeks and counting.”
