Novak Djokovic has said he is ready to miss the French Open, Wimbledon and other tournaments if he has to get a coronavirus shot to comp...
Novak Djokovic has said he is ready to miss the French Open, Wimbledon and other tournaments if he has to get a coronavirus shot to compete.
In a BBC interview which aired on Tuesday, the Serbian tennis star said he believes the freedom to choose what goes into your body is “more important than any title, or anything else”.
Mr Djokovic said he understood his vaccination status meant he was ‘unable to make it to most tournaments at the moment’ but, he added, ‘that’s the price I am willing to pay”.
Mr Djokovic’s decision to remain unvaccinated, even after he was unable to participate in the Australian Opencan delay his quest win more Grand Slam titles than its rivals. (The Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal managed to clinch a record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.)
French authorities said last month that players must be vaccinated to participate in Roland-Garros, the next of the four Grand Slam tournaments. Mr Djokovic may be able to compete at Wimbledon in June, but under recent guidelines he may not be able to compete at the US Open in August.
Mr Djokovic told the BBC he was not against vaccinations in general and did not want to be associated with the anti-vaccination movement, but that his decision regarding the coronavirus vaccine was personal.
“As an elite professional athlete, I have always carefully considered, evaluated everything from supplements, food, water I drink or sports drinks – everything, really everything that comes in in my body as fuel,” he said. in the interview, which was recorded on Monday. “Based on all the information I have obtained, I have decided not to take the vaccine from today.”
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