Tennis superstar Ash Barty will be honoured with her very own statue in Ipswich after her victorious performance to end a 44-year drought and win the Australian Open.
Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding confirmed in a press conference that they have been in discussions with Ms Barty’s team about creating a statue for the World No. 1.
Ms Harding said that Ipswich City Council is planning to put in an application for an Ash Barty statue after the Queensland Government established the Framework for Considering Proposals to Establish Memorials and Monuments of Significance.
“People are very keen to do a statue…so we’ll certainly put in a great application for that,” the mayor said. “Again, we’ll work with Ash’s team to make sure that it’s respectful and it’s something that’s really great.”
Ms Harding said that the community will also be involved in planning the statue. On her Facebook page, hundreds of Ipswich locals have shared their ideas on how best to honour Ms Barty.
I’m so proud to be an Aussie 💙 pic.twitter.com/ELbsqR4Vv8
— Ash Barty (@ashbarty) January 29, 2022
Following her epic win, Ipswich installed five electronic billboards to honour their homegrown talent. Ms Harding said that Barty’s success is an inspiration to the community and described the tennis champ as “down-to-earth and hardworking.”
“She is quintessentially Ipswich; down-to-earth, focused, works hard and she has achieved her dream.”
Ms Harding also said they are considering renaming a road after Ms Barty, depending on how the talks with her team work out.
In 2017, Ipswich gave Ms Ash Barty the key to the city for her outstanding contribution to tennis, besting Grand Slam singles results in the 2017 Australian Open and the 2017 US Open. This was also the year Ms Barty climbed the WTA Top 100 world rankings to end at 17. Tennis centres across Ipswich have also been named after her.
Ms Barty’s accomplishment also brings pride to the First Nations people. The 25-year-old is a proud Ngarigo woman.
Last year, two petitions were opened for an Ash Barty bride and an Ash Barty statue in Springfield Central in Ipswich, where she grew up.
“Ultimately, whatever Council and the community come up with, we will need to see what Ash feels comfortable,” Ms Harding said.
