Australian Open: Novak Djokovic presented evidence of Covid infection in December 2021, court application says
Australian Open 2022: Even as Novak Djokovic's visa cancellation row is taking new turns with every passing day, court documents show the Serb had sought medical exemption by providing evidence of a positive Covid-19 test from December 16.
Novak Djokovic had a valid visa to enter Australia and a valid medical exemption from the organizers of the Australian Open, as he arrived in Melbourne to participate in the season's first Grand Slam tournament, pursuant to his court application.
Novak Djokovic sought medical exemption within the last month by providing proof of having a Kovid-19 infection. According to the news agency Reuters, Djokovic had provided documents testing positive for Kovid-19 on 16 December. However, 14 days later "there was no fever or respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 in the last 72 hours", court documents showed.
Australian court documents show that Djokovic took written approval from Australia's Home Affairs document on January 1 with medical exemptions from his mandatory vaccine rules, his lawyers said in a court filing.
However, after arriving in Melbourne, Djokovic's visa was revoked by the Australian Border Force. Djokovic has been serving time in Australian immigration detention for the past 3 days, even as the Federal Circuit Court in Melbourne adjourned his case to Monday, 10 January.
Czech player Renata Vorakova was also detained and her visa revoked after her exemption issues.
The decision to grant a vaccine exception to Djokovic, who refused to reveal his vaccine status, cast doubt on his participation in the Australian Open, which mandated a vaccine certificate, which was favored by the tennis fraternity and the public. had sharply criticized.
Djokovic took the legal route to challenge the cancellation of his visa and sought approval from January 17 to defend his Australian Open title at Melbourne Park. However, apart from thanking fans on Instagram for their support, Djokovic, one of the world's wealthiest athletes, has not made any public appearances or comments since entering the Park Hotel
Earlier, Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tilly had said that the two-stage application process is confidential and driven by independent experts. All applications were assessed to ensure any exemptions met the conditions set out by the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ATAGI).
Tilly said those reasons include previous adverse reactions to vaccines, recent major surgery or myocarditis, or proven evidence of a COVID infection in the past six months.
Even the Victorian government's rules for medical exemptions in COVID-19 vaccination rules agree with evidence of COVID-19 infection in the past six months.
Tennis Australia denies misleading players
Tennis Australia said it never intentionally misled players and always urged players to get vaccinated, News Corp papers published a document from the organizing body detailing ways to allow players to enter the country with medical exemptions from vaccinations. was advised.
“We have always been consistent in our communication to players that vaccination is the best course of action – not only as the right thing to do to protect themselves and others, but to make sure they can reach Australia. The best way to do it," Tennis Australia said in a statement, quoting local media.
