Sports

Australia tells Djokovic mandatory vaccination not blackmail

Sydney, Australia, Dec 1 (EFE).- The government of the Australian State of Victoria, which hosts the Australian Open in January, said Wednesday that the policy of mandatory Covid-19 vaccines for people entering the country was not blackmail.

The statement by Victoria sports minister Martin Pakula came in response to a claim by Srdjan Djokovic, the father of world number one Novak Djokovic, that the requirement amounted to blackmail.

Djokovic, who has not revealed his vaccination status, would like to play the tournament “with all his heart,” said his father on the Serbian broadcaster Prva TV, but would “probably not under these conditions, with this blackmail and when it’s done that way.”

All participants at the Australian Open – where Djokovic is a nine-time champion – are required to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

Tournament chief Craig Tiley said the Victoria authorities have made this requirement mandatory for all players, who had all been notified by the organizers about it. EFE

aus-esj/sc

Related Articles

Back to top button