World tennis number one Novak Djokovic, who on Tuesday announced that he was getting a medical waiver to play the Australian Open, was blocked at Melbourne airport on Wednesday due to a visa problem.
According to the Australian press, the nine-time Australian Open champion, who took the plane to Melbourne on Tuesday, would not have filled out the correct form for the type of visa requested.
The federal customs service contacted the government of the state of Victoria, where Melbourne is located, when they found that Djokovic’s team had requested “the wrong type of visa,” reported The Age.
Djokovic was seeking to enter the country with a work visa that “needs authorization from the Victorian government,” according to The Australian newspaper.
Jaala Pulford, Victoria’s state minister, said in a tweet on Wednesday that her state had refused to support that request.
According to The Age, despite that rejection, Djokovic should probably finally be allowed to enter Melbourne. This visa problem would delay the procedures but would not prevent your access to Australia.
The Serbian star announced on Tuesday that he was traveling to Melbourne after obtaining a “medical derogation”, which ended with the soap opera on whether he could participate in the tournament.
All participants in the Australian Open, which begins on January 17, must be vaccinated against covid-19 or have an exemption granted by two independent expert committees.
In the past, the Serbian has been reluctant to get vaccinated and has repeatedly refused to confirm whether he was inoculated.
In statements to the Australian channel Channel Nine, the head of the tournament, Craig Tiley, assured that 26 people of the almost 3,000 players and technical personnel who traveled to Australia for the competition had requested a repeal, but only a handful got it.
“Anyone who qualifies has been allowed to come. There were no special favors. There is no special opportunity for Novak,” Tiley said.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison declared for his part, before the Serbian tennis player’s arrival in Melbourne, that if the reasons for Djokovic’s exemption were “insufficient”, the Serbian would be “on the next plane back” to his House.
Tiley also urged the tennis player to reveal the reason for his medical leave. “It would be really helpful if Novak explains the conditions for which he has requested and obtained a medical exemption,” he said.
“I encourage you to tell the community about it … We have been through a very difficult period these last two years and I would appreciate some feedback on it,” he added.
One of the conditions that allowed entry without vaccination is that the applicant had had covid-19 in the last six months. It is not clear that this is the case for Djokovic.
“Terrible message”
The decision sparked outrage in Australia, whose residents have been subjected to significant border restrictions, lockdowns and closures for much of the past two years.
It also caused surprise in some tennis players, such as the British doubles player Jamie Murray, who is contesting the ATP Cup in Sydney. “I think that if I were the one who is not vaccinated, I would not receive the exemption,” he claimed.
Doctor Stephen Parnis, former vice president of the Australian Medical Association, said the decision sends a negative message to people fighting the spread of COVID-19.
“I don’t care how good a tennis player he is. If he refuses to be vaccinated, he should not be allowed in,” Parnis said on Twitter.
Djokovic voiced his opposition to the coronavirus vaccine in April 2020, when it was raised that it might be mandatory to resume tournaments.
“Personally I am not provaccine,” Djokovic declared then. “I don’t want someone to force me to be vaccinated in order to travel.”
The annoyance was palpable on the streets of Melbourne. Ron Wilson, a resident, told AFP that “I find it disgusting … It shouldn’t be a last minute decision to let him in.”
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