Live Updates: Novak Djokovic’s Visa Canceled Again by Australia
Novak Djokovic, the Serbian tennis star, had his visa revoked for a second time by the Australian authorities on Friday, the latest dizzying volley in a drawn-out drama over his refusal to be vaccinated for Covid-19.
Australia’s immigration minister, Alex Hawke, said in a statement that he was canceling Djokovic’s visa on the grounds of “health and good order,” adding that it was in the public interest to do so.
Hawke took the action four days after Djokovic won a legal victory that freed him from immigration detention, where he had been held since arriving at a Melbourne airport last week.
The minister offered no further details about his decision to revoke the visa, other than to say that the Australian government was committed to protecting the country’s borders during the pandemic.
It was unclear what would happen next, with the start of the Australian Open three days away. Djokovic could return to court to seek to have the decision overturned, but legal experts said he might have little chance of success after winning his first round in court on narrow procedural grounds.
Mary Crock, a law professor at the University of Sydney, said it would be “very, very hard” for Djokovic to win any appeal. “The rules of natural justice and procedure don’t apply,” she said. So the only way he could appeal would be to prove there is no public-interest basis on which the visa could have been canceled.
A federal investigation led by Hawke had revealed that Djokovic provided false information on the documents he gave to border officials when he tried to enter the country last week.
Those documents failed to state that Djokovic, who lives in Monte Carlo, had traveled between Serbia and Spain during the 14 days ahead of his arrival in Australia.
In a post on social media on Wednesday, Djokovic acknowledged the misstatements and addressed questions about his movements in the days before and after his positive test for the coronavirus on Dec. 16. That test result allowed him to gain an exemption from state health officials in Victoria to play in the Australian Open.
Djokovic’s statement read as both a desperate request for leniency and an explanation for irresponsible behavior by a star athlete unaccustomed to being held accountable. He said that a member of his support team had made a “human error” when filling out his paperwork. He also said he had made a poor decision to go through with an in-person interview and photo shoot with a French sports publication after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Franck Ramella, a reporter with the French sports newspaper L’Equipe, wrote this week that when he conducted the interview on Dec. 18, he didn’t know that Djokovic had just recently tested positive for the coronavirus.
Djokovic said he was not yet aware that he had tested positive when he attended a tennis event on Dec. 17 in Belgrade, the Serbian capital, where he presented awards to children. But the record of his positive test shows that he took the test at 1:05 p.m. on Dec. 16 and received the positive result seven hours later.
“I just want to have the opportunity to compete against the best players in the world and perform before one of the best crowds in the world,” Djokovic said in the post.
Earlier this week, it appeared that Djokovic would be able to do that, even though he would most likely be the only unvaccinated player in the men’s tournament. On Thursday, he was installed as the No. 1 seed in the men’s bracket.
On Monday afternoon, a judge found that Djokovic had been treated unfairly upon his arrival late on Jan. 5 at a Melbourne airport, where he was questioned for hours and denied a promised chance to contact his lawyers or Australian Open officials.
The judge ordered that Djokovic’s visa be restored, freeing him from the hotel for refugees and asylum seekers where he had been held for five days and clearing a path for him to compete for a record 21st Grand Slam tournament title.
Australian tennis officials had granted Djokovic the vaccination exemption, in consultation with state officials, to play in the tournament, which begins on Monday in Melbourne. But border officials canceled his visa with the support of Prime Minister Scott Morrison, saying that Djokovic remained subject to a requirement that everyone entering the country be fully vaccinated.
The court ruling did not put an end to the case, but rather shifted its focus to Djokovic’s supporting documents, the legitimacy of his coronavirus test and basic questions about what Djokovic knew about his diagnosis and when he knew it.
Legally, Hawke, the immigration minister, can cancel a visa on character grounds or if he finds records to be false, or if he believes the visa’s recipient poses a health or safety risk. Hawke made his decision as Australia is in the midst of its worst bout with the coronavirus.
Mike Ives contributed reporting.
Didn’t an Australian judge rule that Novak Djokovic could stay in the country? Yes. But it did not exactly guarantee that he wouldn’t still be deported.
The judge who ordered Djokovic’s release from immigration detention on Monday found that he had been treated unfairly after his arrival at a Melbourne airport for the Australian Open. After detaining Djokovic, the border authorities promised to let the tennis star speak with tournament organizers and his lawyers early on Jan. 6, only to cancel his visa before he was given a chance.
The judge, Anthony Kelly, ruled that was unfair, and he ordered both Djokovic’s release and the reinstatement of his visa. (In effect, the judge had ruled on the process, not the underlying evidence on which Djokovic had obtained his visa and his medical exemption to compete.)
Within hours, Djokovic’s family had held a news conference in Belgrade, Serbia, hailing the ruling, and Djokovic had posted a photo from his first practice session ahead of the Australian Open.
Even with the judge’s restoration of the visa, however, it was not certain that Djokovic would be able to vie for his 10th Open title when the tournament begins on Monday.
In court, a government lawyer warned that the immigration minister could still cancel his visa, which he did on Friday. The cancellation of Djokovic’s visa could lead to an automatic three-year ban on his entering the country, although in a statement on Friday, the immigration minister, Alex Hawke, made no mention of that penalty.
Novak Djokovic’s ordeal in Australia may presage other battles ahead as the attitudes of sporting bodies, health authorities and public opinion harden toward the non-vaccinated, even if they are glittering global sports stars.
While it is highly unlikely Djokovic, an outspoken vaccine skeptic, will find himself sequestered again in any other country over visa issues, his trouble in Melbourne is an indication of some of the resistance or obstacles he could face in the months ahead if he continues to attempt to travel the world without being vaccinated for Covid-19.
Governments are running out of forbearance, instituting or debating vaccine mandates, and some tennis officials are running out of patience, too. And the pace and direction of the coronavirus pandemic and its variants is unknown.
The next major events on the men’s tour after the Australian Open are the Masters 1000 events in March in Indian Wells, Calif., and Miami. But the United States now requires that visitors be fully vaccinated to travel to the country by plane unless they are U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents or traveling on a U.S. immigrant visa. Only limited exceptions apply, and it is unclear whether Djokovic would qualify for one or would even want to try to qualify for one after the Australian imbroglio.
The French Open, the year’s next Grand Slam tournament, begins in May and appears less problematic for him. Roxana Maracineanu, the French sports minister, told French national radio last week that she expected that Djokovic would be allowed to enter the country and compete if unvaccinated because of the health protocols that are planned for major international sporting events in France.
But in the same interview, Maracineanu emphasized that any athlete, French or foreign, who was a resident in France would be required to show proof of vaccination to have access to sports training facilities.
Some professional leagues have left loopholes in place, but they are also plugging gaps. Djokovic, who has long held nontraditional views on science, finds himself in the distinct minority, with more than 90 percent of the top 100 players on the ATP Tour now vaccinated.
In 2022, the tour will not require vaccinated players to take more than an initial test once they arrive at a tournament unless they develop symptoms. Unvaccinated players and team members will have to be tested regularly.
While Djokovic won in court on Monday, he has undoubtedly lost support in the court of public opinion. The backlash against him in Australia was amplified by his willful refusal for months to clarify his plans for the Open.
The pitched battle in Australia highlighted a new dynamic: Athletes once viewed favorably as iconoclasts are now encountering pushback when they want to play by different rules than everyone else.
Novak Djokovic, the top player in men’s tennis and its leading vaccine skeptic, was stopped at the border in Melbourne, Australia, late on Jan. 5 after flying from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to defend his Australian Open title.
State government and Australian tennis officials had granted Djokovic an exemption from Covid-19 vaccination rules that would allow him to compete in the event. But upon his arrival, federal border officials said that Djokovic did not meet the country’s requirements for entry because he was unvaccinated, and they canceled his visa. He filed a legal appeal on Jan. 6.
The exemption had stirred anger in Australia, which has enforced tough rules to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and has maintained one of the world’s lowest Covid death rates.
Djokovic’s limbo appeared to be rooted in confusion over the exemption granted by Australian tennis officials and local authorities in Victoria, the state where the tournament is held. The exemption was believed to have been approved because of Djokovic’s previous coronavirus infections — grounds that federal officials had warned were invalid.
Here’s a look at how the standoff has unfolded:
Djokovic has long provoked controversy with his views on science and medicine.
Djokovic has received scrutiny for his unscientific beliefs, including his support for a claim that positive emotions can purify toxic water or food. He has been dismissive toward the pandemic and said vaccinations should not be mandated for travel.
Djokovic has won the last three Australian Open men’s singles championships, and nine in his career. But his vaccine stance put in doubt his ability to defend his title.
Last year, the Australian Open said participants would have to be fully vaccinated, in line with requirements for entering the country. Djokovic’s participation was seen as unlikely until he announced Jan. 4 that he would play after receiving an exemption.
He did not say why he had received the exemption; neither did Australian tennis officials.
Djokovic’s application was based on a recent infection, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
The federal government stepped in, stopping Djokovic at the border.
After Djokovic arrived in Melbourne, he was questioned for hours at the airport before being sent to a quarantine hotel. Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia, who has faced criticism over the government’s Covid-19 response in recent days, announced that Djokovic’s entry had been denied.
Djokovic filed an appeal in federal court in Victoria, and an Australian judge ordered his release from immigration detention on Monday.
On Friday, the Australian authorities revoked his visa for the second time.
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