Australian government gave Novak Djokovic a vaccine exemption because he had Covid in December

Novak Djokovic‘s lawyers have claimed the Australian government gave the tennis star a written vaccine exemption because he had Covid in December, as he remains in detention in a Melbourne hotel with ‘maggot-ridden food’. 

The World No. 1 has been detained at an immigration facility in Melbourne after his visa was cancelled on Wednesday following scrutiny of the medical exemption he had secured to travel to the first tennis major of the year.

But his lawyers have now claimed that he was in fact granted a vaccine exemption from the Australian government and Tennis Australia to enter the country because he contracted Covid-19 last month.

It comes after Djokovic’s demands for a personal chef in the $109-a-night Park Hotel in Carlton were rejected as he was told he would receive no special treatment as he awaits his court date on Monday.

In court documents published on Saturday, Djokovic’s lawyers claimed the Serbian recorded a positive test on December 16, and has ‘not had a fever or respiratory symptoms of Covid-19 in the last 72 hours’.

The filing said he had written clearance from Australia’s immigration department before travelling to the country with a medical exemption from its vaccination rules.

On January 1, the sports star received a ‘a document from the Department of Home Affairs (which) told Djokovic that his ‘responses indicate(d) that (he met) the requirements for a quarantine-free arrival into Australia’, the documents added.

As well as written clearance from the Australian government, his lawyers claimed that Tennis Australia granted him a ‘medical exemption from Covid vaccination’ on December 30, on the basis he had recently recovered from the virus.

Anti-vaxx Djokovic has refused to reveal how many, if any, Covid vaccinations he has received.

Despite claims that he was given written clearance to enter Australia, 20-time grand slam winner’s visa was cancelled after at least six hours of heated discussions with Border Force.

He is waiting in detention to fight the decision in court on Monday, after he was deemed not to have met outlined Australian government visa requirements to enter the country after flying in from Dubai.

Leaked documents from Tennis Australia said unvaccinated players were able to apply for a temporary medical exemption if they had contracted Covid-19 in the past six months. 

A letter was sent by Tennis Australia on December 7 to the Association of Tennis Professionals and then passed onto players, the Herald Sun reported. 

The document said unvaccinated players needed to prove they’d had the virus in the time since July 31 in order to enter the country.

But Tennis Australia had been notified by the Federal Government in November that prior infections would not allow the unvaccinated into the country.

Djokovic has been forced to tough it out in the Park Hotel alongside 32 other refugees and asylum seekers, who have previously complained about poor living conditions at the hotel that has been dubbed the ‘Alternative Place of Detention’.

Maggot-riddled food, mouldy bread, fires, Covid outbreaks and bugs in rooms are among the complaints made by some of the guests.

Djokovic’s demands for a personal chef while in detention have been rejected, as he was told he will receive no special treatment while he remains in immigration custody.

He had also asked to be transferred to a rented apartment with a tennis court so he could train and remain in top shape ahead of the Australian Open with the tournament set to begin in a little over a week on January 17.

Djokovic, 34, even offered to pay for private guards in the hopes he could make the move.

But Australian Border Force rejected all of his requests and insisted he will remain at the hotel until a court rules on his deportation on Monday.  

His detainment at the hotel has sparked rallies in Melbourne and Belgrade with the Serbian government claiming the conditions are not ‘befitting’ to the best sportsman while Djokovic’s family have accused the Australian government of treating their son like a ‘prisoner’. 

The site been used as a government detention hotel since December 2020, with staff and guests previously slamming it as an ‘incubator’ for Covid.

The tennis star will have to remain in his room where the windows are sealed shut and air is circulated by air conditioners. 

In October, nearly half of those being held in the hotel tested positive for the Delta strain, with one man taken to hospital by ambulance. 

Refugees are made to share a common kitchen area and lift if travelling between floors.

People who test positive are moved to the first floor but this can happen days after the tests are taken.

On Friday, it emerged that two other people connected to the tournament have joined Djokovic in being instructed to leave the country by the Australian Border Force.

One of the individuals is Czech doubles specialist Renata Voracova, who played in a warm-up tournament in Melbourne this week but has now opted to leave Australia. 

Djokovic has spoken out from inside Australian border detention to thank his family and fans for their support as he waits to hear whether he will be deported.

The Serbian tennis ace, who has been held since Wednesday after he was barred from entering the country to compete in the Australian Open, also posted a Christmas message because today is Christmas Day in the Orthodox tradition.

‘Thank you to people around the world for your continuous support. I can feel it and it is greatly appreciated,’ he wrote in English underneath a post in Serbian, in which he also thanked his family and countrymen. 

A second post against a background which featured an image of the birth of Christ said: ‘God’s peace. Christ is born. Happy Christmas. May God’s love invigorate and fulfill you all.’

The athlete’s post came after wife Jelena penned her own Instagram post lending support to her husband while calling for ‘love and forgiveness’. 

The 35-year-old mother-of-two, who met Djokovic as a teenager and has been censured for spreading Covid disinformation in the past, wrote on Instagram that she is ‘taking a deep breath to calm down and find gratitude (and understanding) in this moment for all that is happening.’ 

‘Thank you dear people, all around the world for using your voice to send love to my husband,’ she added. ‘The only law that we should all respect across every single border is Love and respect for another human being.’ 

She also wished her husband a ‘happy Christmas’ because Orthodox Christians mark Jesus’s birthday on January 7. An Orthodox priest said it was ‘appalling’ that Djokovic is spending the day in a hotel likened to a ‘torture chamber’.

Her message was posted amid protests in Serbia led by Djokovic’s parents, who have slammed his treatment by Australian border officials – claiming he is being held ‘prisoner’ in ‘terrible’ conditions.

But Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews has hit back, saying Djokovic can leave any time he wants and is staying of his own will while lawyers contest the border ruling. His case is due in court Monday. 

‘Mr Djokovic is not being held captive in Australia, he is free to leave at any time that he chooses to do so and Border Force will actually facilitate that,’ she said. 

She spoke as the blame game among Australian officials over the saga continued, with Victoria’s state premier today pointing the finger at tennis bosses. 

Jacinta Allan, acting Victorian premier, has been under pressure because it was her state which granted Djokovic a medical exemption – believed to be on the grounds that he was previously infected with Covid because he is not currently vaccinated.

But Allan clarified on Friday, saying the exemption only qualified Djokovic to play in the tournament and not to cross the Australian border.

Instead she pointed the finger of blame at Craig Tiley, Tennis Australia boss, after it emerged the Department of Health sent him two letters back in November saying that prior Covid infection would not be sufficient to cross the border. 

Allan said Tiley failed to inform her government that the exemption which qualified Djokovic to play in the tournament would not get him into the country.

According to her account, it was this failed communication which led Djokovic to board a flight to Australia believing he had been granted an exemption to enter the country – when in fact he had not.

Ms Allan said: ‘It is the Commonwealth government … that’s responsible for issuing visas and how they engage in that dialogue with bodies like Tennis Australia is a matter for them.’ 

Exemptions to play in the Australian Open are ‘very much separate from the visa process,’ Allan added. 

But Tiley has broken his silence over the Novak Djokovic visa debacle, claiming his staff have done an ‘unbelievable job’ despite the governing body coming under fire for giving the unvaxxed star wrong health advice.

Tiley also called out numerous instances of ‘finger pointing’ that have followed in the ugly saga the past few days – while Serbian superstar and anti-vaxxer Djokovic remains stranded in immigration detention in Melbourne, a far cry from his usual luxurious lifestyle.

In a leaked video, Tiley acknowledged TA staff’s professionalism and diligence in what he firmly believes has been a thorough job in the lead up to the annual grand slam tournament.

‘There’s a lot of finger pointing going on and a lot of blaming going on, but I can assure you our team has done an unbelievable job and have done everything they possibly could according to all the instructions that they have been provided,’ he said in the clip.

‘We empathise with the situation we currently have. We are a player first event…we are working closely with Novak and his team.’

Djokovich has been receiving calls from Serbia, including from his parents and the president, hoping to boost his spirits. 

A priest from the Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church in Melbourne sought permission from immigration authorities to visit the nine-time Australian Open champion to celebrate the Orthodox Christmas.

‘Our Christmas is rich in many customs and it is so important that a priest visits him,’ the church’s dean, Milorad Locard, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.  

‘The whole thing around this event is appalling. That he has to spend Christmas in detention … it is unthinkable.’

Djokovic’s supporters gathered outside the Park Hotel, used to house refugees and asylum seekers near downtown Melbourne, waving flags and banners.

They mixed with human rights advocates who were there more to highlight the plight for other longer-term people in detention, many who’ve complained about their living conditions and exposure to the coronavirus in the pandemic.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison revealed Djokovic’s visa had been cancelled because he ‘didn’t meet the requirements of entry’. 

Djokovic’s legal team took the matter to the Federal Court of Australia in an attempt to have the decision swiftly overturned.

On Thursday, the court ordered Djokovic could remain in the country until at least Monday 4pm. It’s hoped the matter will be settled in court that day.

Tennis Australia have indicated they want a decision as to whether Djokovic can play in the Grand Slam no later than Tuesday ‘for scheduling purposes’. 

The Australian Open was dealt a further blow today as Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews revealed two other international arrivals were being investigated after travelling to Australia in similar circumstances for the Open.

‘I can confirm the Australian Border Force is conducting its inquiries … I am aware that there are two individuals currently being investigated by Australian Border Force,’ Andrews told Channel Seven. 

Andrews said anyone entering Australia had to show evidence of vaccination or medical reasons why they are not vaccinated.

‘We do have the intelligence to indicate there are some individuals here now that have not met the entry requirements and we have to investigate that,’ Andrews said earlier on the Nine Network.

‘I know there is a lot of chatter about the visa. The visa, on my understanding, is not the issue, it is the entry requirement.

‘The Border Force has been very clear that he (Novak) was not able to meet the requirement to provide the evidence he needed for entry to Australia.’

Beyond the quiet of Djokovic’s hotel, the outcry in his native Serbia is growing with his family saying he had been ‘held captive’ and insisting the treatment of one of sport’s greatest performers was a disgrace. 

His family complained about the hotel as around 300 fans held a rally in front of the country’s parliament building in the capital Belgrade,

‘It’s just some small immigration hotel, if we can call it a hotel at all. Some bugs, it’s dirty, and the food is so terrible,’ Djokovic’s mother Dijana said in a press conference.

His father Srdjan promised the crowd the protests would be held every day until Djokovic was released. 

Nearer to home, former Davis Cup player Paul McNamee who ran the Australian Open from 1995 until 2006 as tournament director, joined those who think the 34-year-old deserved his day on court, not in court.

‘It’s not fair. The guy played by the rules, he got his visa, he arrives, he’s a nine-time champion and whether people like it or not he’s entitled to fair play,’ McNamee told ABC News.

‘There’s no doubt there’s some disconnect between the state and the federal government. I hate to think politics are involved but it feels that way.’

Djokovic, one of the greatest tennis players of all time, has garnered headlines in recent years for his stance on Covid vaccines that has enhanced his reputation as a polorising figure.

He first spoke out against vaccination back in April 2020, when the first wave of Covid was spreading and before a jab had even been developed, to say he was not in favour of getting one.

Further controversy came in June when he hosted a Balkans tennis tournament with no mask wearing or social distancing measures in place that led to several players – including himself – getting infected with Covid.

As vaccines were rolled out last year and travel rules relaxed for those who had taken the jab, Djokovic remained silent about his own status – leading many to suspect he had not been jabbed and would not be allowed to play at the Australian Open.

But come December, his name was announced on lists for both the Open and the warm-up ATP Cup – with Tennis Australia revealing earlier this month that he had been granted a medical exemption. 

That prompted a furious backlash from Australians who have been suffering under some of the world’s strictest virus control measures for two years, including tight border rules and bans for the unvaccinated.

Amid the furor, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Wednesday that Djokovic’s visa had been cancelled at the airport and he would be sent home.

While the decision delighted Djokovic’s critics and many ordinary Australians, it also sparked recriminations for Mr Morrison, finger-pointing between the bodies involved, and allegations of political grandstanding.

Djokovic’s father insists he’s being ‘kept in captivity… to stomp all over Serbia and Serbian people’ in a fiery speech which also likened the sportsman to Jesus.

‘Jesus was crucified on the cross … but he is still alive among us,’ Srdjan said. ‘They are trying to crucify and belittle Novak and throw him to his knees.’

The comments came as Djokovic’s parents slammed ‘idiot’ Australian officials for detaining him in a refugee hotel as a bitter war of words erupted after the tennis star had his visa cancelled.

Srdjan railed against his ‘imprisonment’ saying he is the victim of a ‘political attack’, having been made a ‘scapegoat’ of Australia’s harsh vaccine rules.

He called on Serbians and people all around the world to ‘rise up’ and challenge the politicians and border agents who want to ‘humiliate’ their sporting star.