Explained: Why was tennis star Novak Djokovic not allowed to enter Australia?
Australian Open is one of the most popular and highly regarded mega tennis tournaments in the world. Its 2022 edition is scheduled to commence from 17th January at Melbourne. Eminent tennis players from all over the world will be taking part in the tournament. The most renowned of them all is Novak Djokovic from Serbia who is only one step away from reaching the record of winning 21 major men’s singles championships leaving behind two other tennis legends, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. However, it looks like, Djokovic’s dream of securing the maximum number of Grand Slam trophies will remain unfulfilled as of now. Although the Serbian tennis star was exempted the compulsory COVID-19 vaccination requirement as part of the Australian Open official guidelines, the government of Australia revoked his entry visa on 6th January 2022. In fact, he was also detained at the Melbourne International Airport for eight long hours. Here’s how the news unfolded.
Why was then Djokovic prevented from entering Australia if he already had exemption?
Even after having medical exemption from mandatory COVID-19 vaccination to enter Australia, Novak Djokovic was prevented from leaving the Melbourne airport upon arrival. According to media reports, the Australian Border Force cancelled his visa stating the Serbian tennis star failed to provide sufficient proof to support the basic entry requirements. They also reported that no one in and out of Australia were above their COVID-19 rules. Officials even declared Djokovic’s exemption as invalid, but did not provide any reason for their statement.
Why was Djokovic granted medical exemption?
As per the regulations laid down by the state government of Victoria in Melbourne, where the Australian Open 2022 is scheduled to occur, all players, their support staff as well as fans are mandated to be fully vaccinated, unless there’s a serious medical reason for which they aren’t eligible for COVID-19 vaccination.
According to Tennis Australia, the governing body of the hard-court tournament, Djokovic had applied for vaccination exemption along with 25 other players and support team. Fourteen of them, including Djokovic, had been granted an exemption following a review by two independent panels comprising of tennis authorities and medical experts. Tennis Australia’s guidelines read that the exemption will be granted only under “exceptional circumstances if you have an acute medical condition.” However, it remains undisclosed whether the Serbian star fulfilled that criterion or he was offered a privilege. The other criteria included were serious adverse reaction to an earlier dose of COVID-19 vaccine or evidence of COVID-19 infection in the last six months.
What is the current development?
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic had tweeted saying it was a “harassment” of his country’s legend. Meanwhile, majority of the world including most of the tennis fraternity are condemning Djokovic’s refusal to get jabbed despite having suffered from Covid-19 in the past and promising to get vaccinated if it was compulsory for travel. On the other hand, there are a handful of loyal supporters, who have decided to stand with Djokovic in his time of crisis and have shown strong criticism against Tennis Australia and the Australian government. Moreover, as per latest reports, Djokovic is going to soon launch a legal action in Australian Federal Circuit Court against the ‘unjustified’ cancellation of his visa.