Sometimes (ask Gavin Newsome) things are far more serious than they at first appear. Such is the case with the Novak Djokovic Covid scandal, which ended with his deportation from Australia.
What at first seemed a snafu at the border has turned into a legacy defining moment for the world #1, and an act of unprecedented sporting selfishness.
For weeks Djokovic kept the men’s tennis tour in limbo as he awaited a fate with which he chose to gamble.
His choice to not get vaccinated is totally understandable.[1]We should all tire of the simplistic, narcissistic rantings of the pro-vacciners. It goes something like this: either, like the untold millions of us, you get vaccinated or you’re reckless … Continue reading
Which brings us really to how and why this is such a serious matter.
Why this matters
It is one thing to make a personal choice to forego vaccination, but Djokovic’s handling of this in numerous instances made this about so much more. And ironically the reason it was about so much more is that his actions suggest he’d made it only about himself.
Opting out of vaccination is morally defensible. Ignoring the safety and wishes of others, and showing a disregard for the rules and customs of the society into which you wish to enter, is not.
After attending a basketball game during which numerous people tested positive,[2]A look at the crowd in the video reveals myriad people shouting and maskless in an enclosed gym. How, in good conscience, could the unvaccinated Djokovic assume he would not get Covid? Djokovic took a PCR test. While awaiting those results he received a negative antigen test.
Rather than lay low and await the PCR results he attended an event commemorating his own personal stamp and then a day later a Tennis Association of Belgrade award ceremony for junior players. At both events he was indoors, in close proximity to others and maskless.
Djokovic’s Covid-19 infection was recorded by Serbia’s Institute of Public Health on December 16.
All this raises serious questions.
For starters, how is it that Djokovic, renowned for taking meticulous care of his own health and well-being didn’t take an abundance of caution of those around him while he awaited the PCR results? (If the PCR results didn’t matter then why take the test in the first place?)
Once Djokovic’s PCR results came back positive, rather than go into 14 days of isolation as required by the Serbian government, he still attended an interview with a French newspaper on the grounds that he “didn’t want to let the journalist down.”
One wonders whether passing along Covid to the said journalist (who had no knowledge of Djokovic’s health status) would be a let down.
And then on Dec. 25, despite Serbia’s rule that people with Covid self-isolate for 14 days, he was photographed on the streets of Belgrade, unmasked.
But it hardly stops there.
More suspect behavior
Upon arriving in Australia, Djokovic stated on his travel declaration that he had not travelled outside his native Serbia in the prior 14 days. In fact, he trained in Marbella, Spain just days before arriving in Melbourne.
This he called a “human error”[3]It’s hard to tell what to make of this choice of words. Were we running the risk of thinking it a machine error? Of course it’s a human error—one committed by Novak Djokovic as his form … Continue reading and blamed it on his support team and his agent.
And on Jan. 10 the German news website Der Spiegel found something afoul with the QR code belonging to Djokovic’s PCR test. A first check of the code revealed a negative test result, but an hour later a scan said it was positive.
A family affair
During Djokovic’s detention, his parents were understandably upset. It’s hard to imagine a parent who wouldn’t be.
But rather than exercise patience and diplomacy, to provide a sense of dignity or class in the midst of their legendary warrior son’s detention, they stoked the flames of passion, by making their son and their country out to be victims.
Here’s his father Srdjan at a press conference in Serbia: “What is not fair play is the political witch hunt by everybody including the Australian Prime Minister pretending that the rules apply to all.” His son, he said, “met all the required conditions for the entry and participation at the tournament that he would have certainly won. Jesus was crucified and endured many things but is still alive among us. Novak is also crucified… the best sportsman and man in the world. He will endure.”
His mother Dijana took issue with the lack of moral clarity in the Australian decision and his less than five-star accommodations while in detention. “This is a political position, that he cannot play, it is a scandal,” she said. “To put him in dirty hotels, to have no contact with us, is an unprecedented treatment.” She added that he was “subjected to torture.”
While his parents’ anxiety re their son is understandable their utter lack of perspective for the rules and well-being of others is not.
When asked at a press conference a legitimate and direct question about Djokovic’s post Dec. 16 appearances, his family abruptly ended things.
They are a “we first” family and show us little more in their actions since Djokovic’s detention. They seem willing to talk endlessly if it helps the Djokovic cause, and intolerant the moment it doesn’t.
What should have happened
There was little to no case to be made for Djokovic to play the tournament.
The rules for traveling to Australia are quite plain. One must have a visa, a negative Covid test, full vaccination (approved by the country) and a truthfully completed travel declaration. On this last matter it is stated: “Penalties will apply for giving false and misleading information, including potential criminal prosecution for providing false or misleading information.”
Having had Covid-19 does not count as a medical exemption. This from the government’s website: “The Australian Department of Health advises that previous infection with COVID-19 is not considered a medical contraindication for COVID-19 vaccination.”
For the Djokovic team and family and supporters to act surprised at the outcome is nothing short of intellectually dishonest.[4]And to all those waving Greek and Serbian flags in support of Djokovic: you presented yourselves not as morally minded but as nationalistic and religious zealots. It’s been impossible to take … Continue reading
The whole affair created a lot of professional and societal disruption, all so one man, in defiance of law and in denial about his own role in matters, could pursue Grand Slam glory.
And to think it all could have been prevented with a few added values: honesty and integrity and respect and consideration for others. The lack of those is downright telling.
It was time, alas, for the right thing to happen. Djokovic needed to go home, with or without assistance.
Notes, etc.
| ↑1 | We should all tire of the simplistic, narcissistic rantings of the pro-vacciners. It goes something like this: either, like the untold millions of us, you get vaccinated or you’re reckless and irresponsible, a danger to society, selfish, a bad person and a wacko conspiracy theorist (to be thrown into a scorned heap with the Flat Earthers and the Q’Anoners). To see the way this has been peddled repeatedly in our media is a foolish attempt to shut down a legitimate discourse about personal rights, freedom of choice (around, of all things, what you do with your body, to which certainly the abortion rights community can relate) as well as safety. Full disclosure: I am vaccinated. And I fully respect Djokovic’s decision not to be. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | A look at the crowd in the video reveals myriad people shouting and maskless in an enclosed gym. How, in good conscience, could the unvaccinated Djokovic assume he would not get Covid? |
| ↑3 | It’s hard to tell what to make of this choice of words. Were we running the risk of thinking it a machine error? Of course it’s a human error—one committed by Novak Djokovic as his form is his responsibility. |
| ↑4 | And to all those waving Greek and Serbian flags in support of Djokovic: you presented yourselves not as morally minded but as nationalistic and religious zealots. It’s been impossible to take you seriously. |