The plot gets thicker.
If the date is a lie then that will affect him in a bad way as far as getting into the country. Not just this time either, surely?
If the date is true and he went to a large event with kids in attendance when he knew he was positive... then what an utter tragedy of a man he is. If anyone says "but kids don't get ill" then they are entirely missing the point.
Seems to be a bit of a no-win situation for Novak's PR team.
This whole thing stinks! Why do I have a feeling that he'll be allowed in due to it being politicised by his parents and hangers on.
If this was Joe Public they'd be on a plane home by now.
If he is allowed in it could be entertaining though, he is likely to be so loudly booed and heckled then, given his previous form, a full on court meltdown could ensue. Which I'll admit I would quite enjoy!
So What I don't understand is, if he hadn't conveniently got covid a few weeks ago, what was his plan for the Australian open? Was he not going to bother?
Then, realising he could now get in on an exemption thought "oh well I might as well go then....along with my massive entourage". Did they already have all the flights and hotels booked on the off chance?
And I'm no tennis expert, but don't players train to peak for important times of the year....like a grand slam, for instance?
And does this mean he'll need to catch covid 2 weeks out from each grand slam or I'm guessing other countries entry restrictions are less restrictive? What happens if there is no wave for the next Australian open will he be jetting around trying to find someone to infect him?
I still get this horrible feeling he is going to get away with it and end up playing. Just hope I'm wrong
If this was Joe Public they’d be on a plane home by now.
He could be if he wanted to as well but chose to challenge in court same as anyone else could do - he is stuck in the quarantine unit not detained - he can leave at any time
if he hadn’t conveniently got covid a few weeks ago
Assuming he actually has it and he hasn't just conveniently failed a test. It all feels a bit Lance/UCI which no-one really has a taste for any more
I don’t think Novak has done anything wrong.
He was allowed to compete by the organisers because he’d had Covid previously. The Government originally said it was up to the organisers and the State to decide if he could play. They say yes it’s fine. He then travels to Australia, all hell then kicks off. Government then says nothing to do with us, Organisers then throw him under the Bus once the publicity gets a bit feisty.
They could have just said No you can’t compete unless you have had the vaccine.
The organisers also said anyone applying for exemption had to apply by 10th December, which he can't have done.
I know it's deeply cynical, but I can't help thinking that the +ve test is someone else's.
I too suspect he's going to get away with it.
He claimed medical exemption but did not have the necessary paperwork for it so was refused entry
I don’t think Novak has done anything wrong.
No issues with going to a big public event the day after testing positive?
I don’t think Novak has done anything wrong.
Except being an anti-vaxxer.
I was talking about travelling and competing in the tournament as well you know. Not getting vaccinated is a separate issue. If he has fixed his Covid test we’ll never know. The organisers of the tournament wanted him to play, he’s a big draw. As soon as things hot up they change their tune. It’s a big mess of their own making.
I don't think the organisers have changed their minds have they? I'm sure if he gets the separate visa issue sorted out, they let him play. This seems to be the crux of the problem, the mix up over different permissions needed to enter the tournament and the country!
And the state, apparently.
+1
Just because my mate Dietmar invites me over to ski the Fichtelgebirge next weekend, doesn't mean I dont need to sort out jabs docs and faff to actually get into Germany in the first place.
"The Exemption Certificate also recorded that ... the date of the first positive COVID PCR test was recorded on 16 December 2021, it had now been 14 days, and Mr Djokovic had not had a fever or respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 in the last 72 hours."
He didn’t travel to Australia for two weeks did he? It wasn’t the day after. The exemption certificate was from the event organisers to compete in the tournament. You may not agree with the sentiment behind his actions or his anti vax stance but I don’t think he’s done anything illegal regarding competing.
Im sure the lawyers will sort it out one way or another.
He didn’t travel to Australia for two weeks did he? It wasn’t the day after
No but apparently he did go to an award ceremony for children at the Novak Tennis Center the day after testing positive
He did and that’s irresponsible. Nothing to do with the Australian open though is it. If this is a thread about everything wrong with Novak then fair enough. I could go on at length about his tennis shenanigans but maybe that is for a different thread.
I could go on at length about his tennis shenanigans but maybe that is for a different thread.
No this is definitely the thread for it.
*leans forward*
He did and that’s irresponsible. Nothing to do with the Australian open though is it.
Calls into question if his version of events is truthful at least.
Is it really his test?
Was he 'planning' this loophole to enable him to go to Australia - how do you plan to get Covid in a controlled way?
I understand his rationale, don't agree with it though. But, if that is his belief he should stand by it and say he's not going to play in Australia as a consequence.
He needed to have applied for his exemption by the 10th but didn't (alledgedly) test positive until the 16th, same day he went to a big, indoor maskless do for a stamp unveiling and, as noted elsewhere, the day before attending a child-based maskless indoor super-spreader event.
He didn’t travel to Australia for two weeks did he? It wasn’t the day after. The exemption certificate was from the event organisers to compete in the tournament. You may not agree with the sentiment behind his actions or his anti vax stance but I don’t think he’s done anything illegal regarding competing.
But as has already been pointed out, he couldn't have applied for the exemption certificate by the cut off date because he didn't know he was going to test positive*
And he couldn't have booked the flights and hotels for himself and his entourage before then, because he didn't know he was going to test positive*
And he can't have got his training plan organised to peak for the Open that he knew he couldn't enter as he couldn't get an exemption unless he tested positive*
*or he is actually fully jabbed and doesn't want any of his anti-vaxx mates to find out.
Will the legal scrap relate solely to procedural errors over the visa, or is anyone going to point out the three blatant lies obvious discrepancies in his story?
I could go on at length about his tennis shenanigans but maybe that is for a different thread.
No this is definitely the thread for it.
*leans forward*
Agreed.
Go for it.
But as has already been pointed out, he couldn’t have applied for the exemption certificate by the cut off date because he didn’t know he was going to test positive*
And he couldn’t have booked the flights and hotels for himself and his entourage before then, because he didn’t know he was going to test positive*
And he can’t have got his training plan organised to peak for the Open that he knew he couldn’t enter as he couldn’t get an exemption unless he tested positive*
And I can't understand why the press aren't asking these questions. (Maybe they are but I've not seen it anywhere)
Damn, there goes my exclusive world beating investigative journalism.
Damn, there goes my exclusive world beating investigative journalism.
Columbo's got nothing on you MCTD. 😁
Isn't the problem that, only nationals are allowed to enter Australia without being fully vaccinated but having had covid?
I thought non nationals needed to be fully vaccinated to enter Australia or medically exempt... and Novak's neither.
Might be wrong but swear I read that somewhere at some point 😊
I read that too
Damn, there goes my exclusive world beating investigative journalism.
Yours??! You referenced my post, so it's my world-beating investgation 😂
🤣
"The only for me clear thing is if you are vaccinated, you can play in the Australian Open and everywhere, and the world in my opinion have been suffering enough to not follow the rules."
Quote by Rafael Nadal.
If he did indeed have COVID recently wouldn't a test for antibodies prove if he's taking the p?
Wasn't he talking about an exemption long before the 16th December?
I get the impression he's a "don't you know who I ?" type with too much money and ego.
I really hope they send him packing - my cousin and other Ozzies aren't too impressed especially with all they've had to put up with during COVID.
Unfortunately he has won his appeal
On proceedural issue as oppose to him being correct it seems.
Be worth turning in for his first game on court..... Suspect he might be in for a tough crowd.
Not surprised. I don't normally like booing competitors but on this occasion I think the locals will be justified if they do.
Just heard that the immigration minister still has powers to cancel a visa so even if the judge revoked the cancellation that can still happen. No guarantee he’ll make the first game but if he does he’ll go down like a fart in a drysuit.
Really pisses me off when things get overturned for a procedural error.
Well, that was a bit of a farce wasn't it...
I really hope the crowd boo him from the second he walks on the court to when he leaves, and keep doing it when the umpire asks for quiet.
Much as I think the guy is an absolute chump, it's the Australian authorities who are the joke here. They look inept all round!
If he flies home everybody's happy. Australia is rid of a highly dangerous individual and he gets to make their tournament null and void by way of no defending champion being there.
Much as I think the guy is an absolute chump, it’s the Australian authorities who are the joke here. They look inept all round!
That, I think, is a matter of opinion, butvlet's hope they just cancel his visa then that'll be one country less where we have to put up with the trouser snake super-spreading his way around. 🙂
Much as I think the guy is an absolute chump, it’s the Australian authorities who are the joke here. They look inept all round!
Not disagreeing, but it has totally overshadowed the blatant holes in his story.
Apparently if his visa is now cancelled by the minister it means he is not allowed to return for 3 years (but that can be appealed).
just being reported on BBC news that there are rumours that he has been (re)arrested, prior to the immigration minister deciding to cancel his visa.
So he 'won' on a technicality, not because he is right? Hopefully the officials exercise their right to refuse the visa that apparently they can do for exceptional cases.
Be worth turning in for his first game on court….. Suspect he might be in for a tough crowd.
I wonder how many times he'll put up with the booing before he throws a hissy fit and storms off?
If he's appealed the decision, do we all have to clap slowly until the judge makes up his mind?
So he ‘won’ on a technicality, not because he is right?
It's a bit more than that: the immigration officer who interviewed him made certain commitments, which they then reneged on. Whatever we think of him, he should be treated fairly.
Decision sounds reasonable to me from what I've heard.
Bums
Be better if every other player refused to play against him.
Which I doubt would happen.
One of the documents that his team produced shows when he took the PCR test and when it was reported back to him. It shows that on 17th December he knew he had had a positive test and still was with a load of young kids unmasked and even hugging them. Surely he should have been self isolating at that point. It seems the Aus Border Force mucked up but in my opinion he hasn’t shown himself in a good light either.
He's been arrested.
Well let's hope they follow due process this time.
Decision sounds reasonable to me from what I’ve heard.
As much as he is a knob (for being anti vax, for trying to game the system, for claiming to be positive to get an exemption and then clearly and publicly acting like he was not, and for years just being Novak Djokovic) the Aussies royally naused up here. If there is a clear rule that an overseas individual can't use the 'just had covid' clause, how did he get an exemption?
Interestingly this also puts the Serb government in an tricky spot. Massive vocal support for him and a miscarriage of justice based on him having a valid exemption. If the exemption is valid as he claimed he broke Serb law and did not isolate when positive. How are they going to juggle that one?
I feel unreasonably riled by this. Which is mad because our government does not even have such a rule and there now seems to be enough covid about it Australia the cat's out of the bag and it seems a bit irrelevant anyway. Need to have a word with myself.
Yep and another knob has just tested positive as well, albeit an Aussie one...Nick Kyrgios!
If the exemption is valid as he claimed he broke Serb law and did not isolate when positive. How are they going to juggle that one?
I’m sure they’ll find someone else to blame. Extremely loudly.
Interestingly this also puts the Serb government in an tricky spot. Massive vocal support for him and a miscarriage of justice based on him having a valid exemption. If the exemption is valid as he claimed he broke Serb law and did not isolate when positive. How are they going to juggle that one?
You're forgetting that he's basically seen as a deity in Serbia, similar to how Brazil worshipped Pele and Senna. He'll be given a presidential pardon or something similar.
Disappointing.
As is usual it seems, laws don't apply if you are, say, a prime minister, or a tennis player.
Uh, what’s actually going on. Twitter seems to suggest he’s “evaded” border force and punches have been thrown between supporters and Police.
Seriously has he gone all OJ Simpson?
This is the second series of The Tourist sorted out...
If he’s appealed the decision, do we all have to clap slowly until the judge makes up his mind?
Deserves recognition and 👏👏
What kind of mad world are we living in where this kind of shenanigans occurs because a tennisist can't lob his balls around 😳
https://twitter.com/9NewsMelb/status/1480495000358109186?s=20
Murray serving up another ace
Fans tennis fans my god.
They need to kick him out now or three will be tennis holigans at the match, Pimms everywhere.
C'mon Tim!
Farage getting involved in reminds me of Paul Gascoigne turning up at the Raoul Moat search, weird!
What kind of mad world are we living in where this kind of shenanigans occurs because a tennisist can’t lob his balls around 😳
Serbia and unhinged nationalism isn’t that unusual. No idea who these people actually are mind you.
If you listen to the press conference, you'd think it was Nelson Mandella being released from Robben Island
Talk about laying it on a bit thick 🙄
I couldn't listen to the rants of an arrogant multi-millionaire who thinks his sh1t doesn't stink. Entitled @rsehole of the highest order - even before this happend.
So he's suffered 'torture', according to his mum?
Poor little thing. You only have to go back a few decades in Serbian history to know what torture really looks like.
What an absolute melt, hope he gets booed non-stop at Rod Laver.
The Guardian have a transcript of the conversation at immigration. Sounds like they are making it up as they go along when they could just have said "sorry Sir you've been poorly advised about what is needed to enter Oz and you'll have to take it up with whoever advised you". Idiots.
This is a notice of intention to consider cancellation under s 116 of the Migration Act 1958. So once I serve this notice to you I will give you like, you know, 20 minutes – or whatever if you need more time you can request that – and you need to provide us reasons why we shouldn’t cancel the visa.
Seems like at this point if he'd said 20 mins at 0400 isn't sufficient, they could have agreed to extend until people were available and spoken directly to the parties involved?
It then went on to nearly 0800 anyway, were the immigration people rushing to get him out to the detention hotel before then?
Neither side seem to be covering themselves in glory do they?
I can't quite believe how tone deaf he is on the whole thing. It is almost like he can't see beyond his sycophantic bubble and believes everyone is supporting him.
Unless something dramatic changes in the next day or so, he is going to face relentless booing throughout the tournament (and possibly a few more after). It is also difficult to see him not overtake Pete Sampras as the most disliked number one (if he hasn't already).
When he retires in a few years, I wonder if he will look back and think that he was a bit of a silly billy.
