Beijing time, January 12: Serbian tennis player Djokovic Djokovic, who was deeply involved in the "visa gate" storm this morning Beijing time, issued a long statement through social media. In his statement, Djokovic answered questions about his recent attendance at public events after his diagnosis of COVID-19 and his alleged falsification of entry and exit records. Although some of the questions were answered in the statement, the parties' doubts about Djokovic have taken it to a new level, because his interpretation and actual disclosure of the questions have many doubts. According to foreign media reports, Australian authorities are studying various materials to decide whether to cancel Djokovic's visa again and repatriate him. Today we continue to talk about this topic.
Djokovic, who updated his social media this morning Beijing time, said, "I would like to explain some of the ongoing misinformation about my December PCR test results and my participation in the event." This is some information that needs to be corrected, especially to allay fears at the Australian border about my presence in Australia and in response to some of the remarks that have hurt my family. I would like to say that I work hard to keep everyone safe and I have complied with the requirements of the test. I watched a basketball game in Belgrade on 12.14 and after that there were some reports of covid-19 positives among some of the people present. Although I didn't have any symptoms at the time, I went to a rapid test for covid-19 at 12.16 after I heard the news, and the result was negative. Out of caution, I went for an official PCR test on the same day. The next day, at 12.17, I was in Belgrade for an awards event for the children, and before going to that event, I did another rapid TEST for COVID-19 and the result was still negative. I didn't feel any symptoms, and I didn't receive a notification about my PCR testing positive before that activity ended. On 12.18, I was interviewed by the team newspaper, something I had promised a long time ago, I did not want to disappoint the reporters who came, I canceled all the other trips. I ensured social distancing during the process and only removed my mask when taking pictures. Since then, I have been quarantined as required, and now in retrospect, this is a wrong choice and judgment, and I admit that I should cancel the interview at that time and reschedule it. ”
In response to allegations of falsification of entry materials provided to the Australian authorities, he said: "This is what my staff filled out on my behalf, just as I said to customs officers when I was at customs. My staff sincerely apologise for their mistake, he mistook the option for a trip before I came to Australia, which was a man-made mistake but not deliberate. In the current environment, these errors sometimes occur. My team has sent more information to the Australian Government on clarifying the matter. As I explain these things, out of respect for the Australian government and the procedures they are currently working on, I will not comment further. Participating in the Australian Open has always been a great honor for me. The players, the fans, the local people and the whole world love this tournament and I just want to have a chance to play at the Australian Open and compete against the top players in the world in front of one of the best spectators in the world. ”
Djokovic's statement today is more mainly aimed at answering some of the key issues of public concern at present. One more message that needs to be conveyed is that he is determined to participate in this year's Australian Open competition, and he is well aware that he will attend the pre-match press conference after the draw is over, when the series of questions he exposes will inevitably become the focus of media questioning. He issued this statement today in order to block the media's leisurely mouth, and he will refuse to answer relevant questions at the press conference. Today Djokovic continued to train at rodrawall stadium, but the organizing committee still cut off the public signal and only allowed official photographers to shoot, and Djokovic did not accept media interviews.
But Djokovic's statement today also makes everyone find something even more puzzling. Djokovic described in the statement that he received a nucleic acid test on the 16th, and only got a nucleic acid positive report on the evening of the 17th, proving that he attended the activities with the children without his knowledge. However, Djokovic also admitted that he was positive when he was interviewed and filmed by the French newspaper "Team" on the 18th, on the grounds that the reporter had arrived in Belgrade and was inconvenient to refuse. He insisted that he wore masks and maintained social distancing during the interviews. The reporter who interviewed Djokovic at the time also revealed that during the interview, Djokovic did not inform him of the new crown infection, asked the interview not to ask him questions about not vaccinated to participate in the competition, in addition to the reporter also revealed that he had arrived in Melbourne to prepare for this year's Australian Open competition, his nucleic acid test was negative. At the same time, Djokovic also threw the pot to the staff, it was the staff's mistake that led to the wrong choice of "no travel in the past 14 days", and he has communicated with the Australian authorities about this matter.
But here we can see from the evidence provided by Djokovic to the court on Monday that he received a nucleic acid test at noon on December 16, and the test results were announced that night to be positive, which is obviously different from his own claim that he only got the results on the night of the 17th. At present, public opinion has expressed strong dissatisfaction with his participation in public activities after his diagnosis. Serbian Prime Minister Brnabić said in an interview with the media that "djokovic's attendance at a public event with a positive nucleic acid test is a clear violation, according to Serbian regulations once a positive nucleic acid test must be subjected to 14 days of home isolation, if violated this provision faces a maximum of three years in prison." Djokovic is no exception, and the Serbian epidemic prevention department should intervene to deal with the violation. ”
According to the latest information available, Australian Immigration officials expanded the scope of the investigation into Djokovic's visa, including a series of his suspected violations: participating in activities in the case of infection with the new crown, incorrect itinerary declarations and contradictory descriptions of the time when the positive result was learned, etc. Quoting local media sources Australian Immigration Director Hawke will make a decision on whether to cancel the visa again on the 13th as early as the 13th. According to the news released by the Australian Open Organizing Committee, the lottery ceremony of the Australian Open will begin at 3 p.m. local time. According to a poll conducted online by Australian media, more than 40,000 people voted, more than 80% of whom wanted immigration commissioner Hawke to expel Djokovic.
Djokovic's statement does have a feeling of getting darker and darker, and he is also prepared to be hard. The Czech player Volakova, who has been expelled with the same treatment as him, is ready to sue the Australian Open. As for whether Djokovic will be repatriated, we will continue to pay attention to the relevant reports.