Novak Djokovic has confirmed that he is going to Melbourne for a shot at his 21st Grand Slam title, but — much to the chagrin of the lockdown-battered citizens of Melbourne — he is using the backdoor entrance.
The residents of Melbourne are exhausted. They have endured the most stringent, lengthiest series of COVID lockdowns of any city in the entire world. No weddings, no funerals. No in-restaurant dining, or school for children for 6 rounds of “don’t leave your house”.
And now, with cases on the rise, Novak Djokovic has just announced with delight that he is on his way to Melbourne — with a medical exemption to bypass the vaccine requirement necessary to enter Australia.
Yep. The same Novak Djokovic who has repeatedly touted “freedom of choice” in regards to the vaccine for most of the pandemic. The same one who rather famously held a series of charity tennis matches across the Balkan peninsula during the first wave of the pandemic that ultimately became a super-spreader event.
Is it a legitimate claim? I have no idea. Djokovic himself is not forthcoming with the details of his vaccination/health status. And as Australian Open chief Craig Tiley has pointed out, the exemption that Djokovic received can be applied for by anyone wishing to enter the state of Victoria. Clearly whatever doctor-certified condition he has qualifies him for it.
The fact that it was bestowed on the top tennis player in the world ahead of his most successful major, who also happens to have taken a fairly vocal stance against vaccine mandates for ATP players, may just be coincidence. It’s not possible to debate the merit of the exemption, since we know hardly any details about it.
But this much I DO know: the decision is such a blatant act of disrespect to the citizens of Melbourne, it would not surprise me if there were literal demonstrations outside the venue in response. It’s as though the panel is saying “Sorry, Tilda. We know you want to attend your grandmother’s funeral, but you have to think about the greater good. What if you spread COVID while you’re there? How selfish ARE you? What’s that? You want to know why the hell we’re letting a TENNIS PLAYER with no proof of vaccination into the state to play a bloody game? That’s important business, young lady. And none of your concern.”
They’re going to boo him. They’re going to heckle him. They may, in fact, shun him in ways we can only imagine. None of this will be a surprise and every last bit of it will have been earned. Every cheer on a double-fault, every angry sign, every last cat-call. Because he isn’t going to Australia to perform a vital duty; he isn’t twisting himself into a pretzel to get into the country because that’s where he lives and he’s been trying to get home for the past two years. He is a dude who hits a ball for a living.
It doesn’t matter how valid his medical exemption is. It could be the most valid reason in the entire world. What matters is that it is completely unnecessary. He does NOT need to be there. He doesn’t. He doesn’t have to work to pay his rent or put food on the table. He isn’t an essential worker; he isn’t saving lives.
What matters is that the city’s residents have been bludgeoned with restrictions under the Greater Good banner. They were ARRESTED for leaving their homes at one point. All for the greater good.
And now this? Pardon me, but what about the greater good? It’s bullshit. I’m incensed.
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