World No. 1 Novak Djokovic was denied entry to Australia for failing to provide proper documentation for a waiver of the country’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, the Australian Border Force announced on Wednesday.
“Non-citizens who do not have a valid visa upon entry or whose visa has been canceled will be detained and removed from Australia,” the ABF said in a statement.
Upon arriving in Melbourne for the Australian Open, a tournament he has won nine times out of his 20 Grand Slam titles, Djokovic spent most of Wednesday night being questioned by ABF officials.
Djokovic will reportedly appeal in Australian courts, but it is unclear what his chances would be that the decision would be overturned.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed on Wednesday that Djokovic’s visa had been canceled, saying “rules are rules, especially when it comes to our borders. No one is above these rules.”
Although Australian Open officials said that Djokovic was one of the few people who traveled to the event who received medical exemptions (players, coaches, support staff, etc.), Djokovic has become a focus of criticism due to the perception that he was getting special attention. treatment. The tournament has said that the waivers were handled anonymously by an independent panel of medical experts.
It is not clear what reasons Djokovic used to request the exemption. One of the possible reasons cited could be a COVID-19 infection in the last six months, but most of the reasons allowed by the Australian government are serious medical conditions that probably wouldn’t affect one of the best athletes in the world.
Melbourne, where the Australian Open takes place, has been under severe anti-COVID measures during the pandemic with more than 260 days of lockdowns and movement restrictions within the country requiring special permission. The state of Victoria is now over 90% fully vaccinated, and the understanding from other players was that vaccination would be required to enter the Australian Open.
According to the ATP, 95 of the top 100 players in the ranking were vaccinated. One of those who is not, American Tennys Sandgren, did not make the trip despite being a two-time Australian Open quarter-finalist.
Djokovic, who for months avoided answering directly whether he had been vaccinated, has been an outspoken skeptic about vaccines in the past. In an embarrassing incident in the early days of the pandemic, Djokovic took a live Instagram that helped promote a herbal supplement company whose founder claimed that emotions can change the molecular structure of water.
Sam Groth, a retired ATP Tour of Australia player, wrote in a column for the Melbourne Herald Sun that Djokovic was “laughing in the faces of the Victorians.”
Current Australian No. 1 Alex de Minaur had a puzzled expression on his face when asked about it on Tuesday at the ATP Cup in Sydney.
“I just think it’s very interesting,” he said. “That is all what I am going to say”.
Now, with the likelihood of Djokovic being deported, there will be a backlash from the other side. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic posted a photo of Djokovic on his Instagram account shortly before the decision, saying that he had spoken with his country’s most accomplished athlete and that Serbia “will fight for Novak Djokovic, for justice and truth. “.
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism