Saturday 15 January 2022
date for the hearing
Djokovic in custody again in Melbourne
The Australian government revoked Novak Djokovic’s visa for the second time. The tennis star lodges an objection to this. While a court is examining the application, the athlete is again being observed.
After entering Australia without a corona vaccination, the Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic was arrested again. This was announced by Djokovic’s lawyers after the Australian government declared his visa invalid a second time on Friday. According to court documents, the 34-year-old is being held at a location in Melbourne while a court considers his appeal against his deportation from Australia. The professional athlete’s hearing is scheduled for Sunday at 9:30 a.m. local time.
The Australian government argued, according to court documents, that the unvaccinated tennis player’s presence in the country could “encourage anti-vaccination sentiment”. Immigration Minister Alex Hawke justified the cancellation of Djokovic’s visa on “reasons of health and public order”.
Djokovic wanted to win his 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open in Melbourne and set a new record. The tournament starts on Monday. Djokovic is a self-confessed vaccination skeptic and, in his own words, has not been vaccinated against the corona virus. Despite the corona vaccination requirement for foreigners entering the country, the world number one had flown to Australia.
He claimed an exception because he tested positive for the corona virus on December 16 and thus had a recovered status. However, Australian entry rules do not allow foreigners to be exempt from vaccination after a recent infection.
When Djokovic entered the country on January 5, the authorities had already declared his visa invalid. At the beginning of the week, a judge granted an objection by his lawyers because of a procedural error, Djokovic was allowed to leave the deportation hotel after four nights. Since then he has been training in Melbourne for the upcoming tournament. If his visa is canceled, the 34-year-old faces deportation as well as a three-year entry ban in Australia.
The Djokovic case had taken new turns in the past few days. He declared incorrect information about his travel activities before the flight to Melbourne to be a “mistake” by his team. The 34-year-old was also criticized because of a meeting with young tennis players in his home country immediately after his positive corona test and because of an interview appointment a day later.