Novak Djokovic has blamed his agent for a “clerical error” in stating that he had not traveled in the two weeks prior to his flight to Australia and acknowledged an “error in judgment” in not isolating himself after testing positive for Covid.
The world’s No. 1 issued a statement Wednesday in an attempt to address what it called “continuing misinformation” about his activities in December before traveling to Australia in an attempt to retain his Australian Open crown.
But Djokovic’s statement, posted on Instagram, did not address Der Spiegel’s reports claiming apparent anomalies with the result of his December 16 PCR test. The report has raised questions about the positive Covid diagnosis that forms the basis of its exemption to travel to Australia.
Wednesday’s statement claims that he was not notified of his positive result until December 17 despite Djokovic’s affidavit in federal circuit court that he was “examined and diagnosed” on December 16.
Australian Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has confirmed that he is still considering canceling Djokovic’s visa again, citing “additional filings and extensive supporting documentation” from the player’s lawyers as the cause of the delay.
The federal circuit court restored Djokovic’s visa on Monday, but the ministerial review called into question his ability to remain in Australia.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that the Australian Border Force was investigating his pre-flight statement after images surfaced suggesting he was in Belgrade less than two weeks before his flight from Spain to Australia on January 4.
On Wednesday, Djokovic said he wanted to correct “the misinformation … in order to alleviate broader concern in the community about my presence in Australia.”
“I want to emphasize that I have tried very hard to ensure everyone’s safety and my compliance with testing obligations,” he said.
“I attended a basketball game in Belgrade on December 14, after which several people were reported to have tested positive for Covid-19.
“Despite not having symptoms of Covid, I had a rapid antigen test on December 16 that came back negative and, as a precaution, I also had an official PCR test approved that same day.”
Djokovic said on December 17 that he attended a tennis event in Belgrade to present awards to the children, after testing negative again on a rapid test. “I was asymptomatic and feeling fine, and I had not received notification of a positive PCR test result until after that event.”
Djokovic said that after receiving the positive result, he attended his tennis center in Belgrade on December 18 to maintain a “long-standing engagement for a L’Equipe interview” because he “felt compelled” and “did not want to disappoint the journalist. “. . Djokovic says he socially distanced himself and wore a mask, except while taking photos.
“While I did go home after the interview to isolate myself for the required period, on second thought, this was an error in judgment and I accept that I should have rescheduled this engagement.”
Djokovic said the incorrect January 1 pre-trip statement was “submitted by my support team on my behalf.”
“My agent sincerely apologizes for the clerical error in checking the wrong box about my previous trip prior to coming to Australia. This was human error and certainly not deliberate. “
Djokovic said he “provided additional information to the Australian government to clarify this matter” but would not comment further “out of the greatest respect for the Australian government and its authorities and the current process.”
Djokovic did not address Der Spiegel’s report that claimed that the QR code from their PCR test on December 16 showed a negative result when scanned earlier this week before subsequently testing positive.
He also claimed to have discovered anomalies between the paper version of the PCR test result that turned out to be positive and the digital version presented by the tennis player’s lawyers.
The paper version reportedly suggests that the presumed positive test result is not from December 16 but, according to the scheduled time, from December 26. Spiegel acknowledged that the timestamp could also reflect when the tested person downloaded the result.
According to the findings of the TI Zerforschung research group, and shared with Spiegel, the positive test on December 16 had the Serbian test system number 7371999. Djokovic’s negative test result, performed on December 22, allegedly had an identification number of approximately 50,000 positions. lower.
Researchers at Zerforschung have told Spiegel that they have confirmation that the test ID numbers are increasing, rather than decreasing, raising questions that the supposedly December 22 test was conducted before the supposedly December 16 test. from December.
Spiegel asked questions of both Djokovic and the Serbian health authorities, but had yet to receive a response on Tuesday night. The Guardian has also reached out to Djokovic for comment.
A spokesman for Australia’s immigration minister Alex Hawke said he was still considering using his personal power to cancel Djokovic’s visa.
“Mr. Djokovic’s attorneys recently provided extensive additional documents and supporting documentation said to be relevant to the possible cancellation of Mr. Djokovic’s visa,” he said Wednesday. “Naturally, this will affect the time frame for a decision.”
Around the same time as Djokovic’s statement was released, the world No. 1 continued his preparations for the tournament by holding his first open training session at Rod Laver Arena with Tristan Schoolkate, a young Australian player.
Djokovic’s first two practices since his release from prison were held in private with the Rod Laver Arena gates closed and the pitch’s live stream turned off Tuesday.
Additional information Tumaini Carayol
www.theguardian.com
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism