BBC interview
“I’m ready to pay the price”: Novak Djokovic speaks for the first time about his vaccination refusal
Novak Djokovic in Melbourne on his way to the court hearing
© James Ross / DPA
Tennis star Novak Djokovic has spoken publicly about vaccination for the first time since the Australian Open scandal. He is not a general opponent of vaccination, but still does not want to be vaccinated against the corona virus. With all the consequences for his career.
His exclusion from the Australian Open was a global scandal. Now tennis star Novak Djokovic has spoken publicly for the first time about his attitude towards vaccination. In the TV interview with BBC journalist Amol Rajan, Djokovic confirms that he has not been vaccinated against Covid-19 and that he does not intend to do so at the moment – even if it will cost him participation in the upcoming Grand Slam tournaments. “That’s the price I’m willing to pay.”
In the interview, the 34-year-old tennis star also asserts that he is not a general opponent of vaccination. “I was never against vaccination,” says Djokovic. Vaccinations are probably the biggest effort worldwide to end the pandemic “and I completely respect that”. However, he personally does not want to take part in this effort. He was always for the freedom to decide for himself. “Based on all the information I have, I have decided not to get vaccinated,” says Djokovic – at least so far (“as of today”). However, he is still open to getting vaccinated after all, “because we are all trying to find the best possible solution to end Covid”.
Despite his personal refusal to vaccinate, he does not want to be lumped together with radical opponents of vaccination. “I never said I was part of this movement,” says Djokovic, who also confirms having received vaccinations as a child. As an athlete, he’s always been very careful about what he puts into his body, from supplements to the water he drinks. It is well known that in the past he has not always followed the current state of medical knowledge.
Djokovic denies allegations
The current number 1 in the tennis world rankings said he hopes to be able to take part in the upcoming Grand Slam tournaments, the French Open and Wimbledon, without being vaccinated. If that doesn’t work, that’s “the price I’m willing to pay.” When asked if he really wanted to give up the chance to become the best tennis player of all time by title because of the refusal to vaccinate, Djokovic answered “yes”.
In the interview, Djokovic also comments on the massive doubts about the correctness of his positive corona test from December, on the basis of which he wanted to travel to Australia as a recovered person. “I understand that there is a lot of criticism and I understand that people have different theories about how lucky I was or how convenient that was for me,” Djokovic said. “But nobody is lucky enough to get Covid. Millions of people around the world are struggling with Covid and are still doing it. So I take this very seriously, I really don’t want anyone to think I’ve abused anything or got a positive PCR test in my favor to go to Australia.”
The formal error in the entry form, which had also been discussed, was not intentional. But in the end he was expelled by the Australian government because it felt “that I could create anti-vaccination sentiment in the country or in the city, which I totally disagree with”. He said he was very sad and disappointed at how things had ended in Australia. “It was not easy.”
Source: BBC