Australian immigration minister this morning (Friday) revoked tennis player Novak Djokovic’s entry visa to Australia. A statement from Secretary of State Alex Hawke said that the decision was made in the context of health and good order and that it was in the public interest.
On Tuesday, the world-ranked tennis player admitted that he made a false statement in his entry form into the country, which led to a farce around his entry into Australia. In a post he posted on his Instagram account, Djokovic claimed that his agent’s technical error in filling out the form, led to a problem with the Australian authorities and to the fact that he actually made the false statement. “It was an unintentional human error. We are living in a challenging time in a global epidemic and sometimes these mistakes can happen. Today, my team provided more information to the Australian Government to clarify the issue,” he wrote at the time.
The announcement comes after the farce surrounding the tennis player’s entry into Australia last week. Djokovic has announced his intention to come to the country to compete in the Australian Open, although he is not vaccinated, claiming he has a medical exemption from vaccination. The Australian authorities were unconvinced and got into a media quarrel with the senior tennis player, which ended in his refusal to enter the country and Djokovic’s stay at a refugee hotel in Melbourne. After a few days and a court hearing on Djokovic’s appeal of the Australian decision, the tennis player was allowed to take part in the competition.