Tennis star Novak Djokovic admits to making false statements in Australian travel document

Novak Djokovic of Serbia, the number one man in the world, will be seen training on Wednesday in Melbourne Park. He plans to attend the Australian Open, which opens on Monday, but is still threatened with deportation for his COVID-19-related activities. Photo: James Ross / EPA-EFE

Australian authorities are investigating Djokovic’s travel history to see if an unvaccinated athlete violated pandemic regulations when he arrived in the country on January 5 to compete in this month’s Australian Open.

Djokovic was initially arrested by immigration authorities and his entry visa was revoked because he tried to enter Australia unvaccinated. The tennis star had been granted a medical exemption based on his claim that he had contracted the COVID-19 virus and recovered from it in mid-December, but questions have revolved around his account.

The judge returned Djokovic’s visa on Monday and ordered his release. However, Immigration Secretary Alex Hawke said he was still considering using his personal rights to revoke the visa again and expel the world’s number one tennis player.

Djokovic and his physiotherapist Ulises Badio will hold a workout on Tuesday in Melbourne Park. Photo by Scott Barbour / Tennis Australia / EPA-EFE

It was revealed on Tuesday that authorities went through Djokovic’s travel announcement as social media messages showed he had traveled internationally during the most important two weeks before arriving in Melbourne from Spain.

In a statement on Wednesday, Djokovic accused his agent of making an “administrative error” while checking a box stating that he had not traveled within two weeks of arriving in the country.

“This was a human error, and not really intentional,” he said in a statement. “We are living in challenging times in a global pandemic and sometimes these mistakes happen.”

Djokovic, who went to court for an internship in Melbourne Park, said his team had provided the government with additional information to clarify the matter and that his agent was “sincerely apologizing” for the mistake.

However, there are still questions about when Djokovic’s virus test was positive.

His travel document, Djokovic said he received a positive test on December 16, but his statement on Wednesday will set the result of the PCR test for the next day.

Djokovic said he conducted a rapid antigen test on December 16, which returned negative after participating in a basketball game in Serbia two days earlier in which several people had contracted the virus.

On December 17, he says he took a quick test before the tennis event in Belgrade, which was also negative.

“I was asymptomatic and felt good and hadn’t been notified of a positive PCR test result until after the incident,” he said. “The next day, December 18, I was at my tennis center in Belgrade to fulfill my long-standing commitment to interviewing and photographing L’Equipe.”

Djokovic said he “felt obligated” to continue the interview and wore a mask during filming.

“When I went home after the interview to isolate myself for the time required, after thinking about it, it was a mistake of judgment, and I accept that I should have postponed this commitment,” he said.

On Wednesday, Hawke’s office said Djokovic’s lawyers have provided more documents and that the minister was still considering expelling Australia’s top open investors a few days before the Grand Slam, which starts on Monday and runs until 30 January. This is the first Grand Slam of 2022.

“Mr Djokovic’s lawyers have recently provided lengthy additional steps and supporting documents that are said to be relevant to the possible revocation of Mr Djokovic’s visa,” a spokesman for the office said. “Naturally, this affects the time frame of the decision.”