Djokovic denied entry to Australia
Novak Djokovic’s chance to play for a 10th Australian Open title was thrown into limbo early Thursday when the country denied him entry and canceled his visa because he failed to meet the requirements for an exemption to COVID-19 vaccination rules.
The top-ranked Djokovic landed in Australia late Wednesday after receiving a medical exemption from the Victoria state government that would shield him from the strict vaccination rules in place for this year’s first major tennis tournament, which begins Jan. 17.
But border authorities didn’t accept the exemption. The Australian Border Force issued a statement saying Djokovic failed to meet entry requirements.
The president of Djokovic’s native Serbia’s blasted the “harassment” of the star, who was detained overnight at Melbourne Tullamarine Airport. The 20-time major winner had to wait more than eight hours at the airport to find out if he would be allowed into the country.
Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said nobody was above the rules.
“Mr. Djokovic’s visa has been canceled. Rules are rules,” Morrison posted on Twitter. “No one is above these rules. Our strong border policies have been critical to Australia having one of the lowest death rates in the world from COVID.”
Hunt said Djokovic was free to appeal. “But if a visa is canceled, somebody will have to leave the country.”
The medical exemption had been designed to allow Djokovic to play in the Australian Open, regardless of his vaccination status for COVID-19. He has spoken out against vaccines in the past and has steadfastly refused to acknowledge whether he received any shots against the coronavirus.
Among the acceptable reasons for an exemption are acute major medical conditions, serious adverse reaction to a previous dose of COVID vaccine or evidence of a COVID infection within the last six months.
Djokovic tested positive for the coronavirus in June 2020 after he played in a series of exhibition matches that he organized in Serbia and Croatia without social distancing amid the pandemic.
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