World number 1 Tennis star Novak Djokovic admitted to submitting travel documents containing incorrect information to Australian immigration officials last week and to attend an interview and photoshoot in December after learning he was infected with COVID-19.
In an Instagram post on Wednesday, Djokovic described as a way to clear up “the continuing misinformation about my activities last month.”
Djokovic said the travel details were filled by the support team who had made an “administrative mistake” as they ticked to “no” to a box that questioned whether he had traveled elsewhere in the 14 days before arriving in Australia.
“My agent sincerely apologizes for the administrative mistake. This was a human error and certainly not deliberate,” Djokovic said.
“We are living in challenging times in a global pandemic and sometimes these mistakes can occur,” Djokovic said.
“This was human error and certainly not deliberate,” Djokovic said. Reports claim he had flown from Serbia to Spain in recent weeks.
His latest comments have prompted a new investigation from officials, as the Australian government considers whether to deport the Serbian star.
Djokovic arrived in Australia – despite being unvaccinated – to defend his Australian Open crown, but he had his visa revoked shortly after arriving in the country amid uncertainty over the vaccine exemptions that allowed him to enter.
The tennis star had been granted a medical exemption based on his claim of having contracted and recovered from the COVID-19 virus in mid-December, but questions have swirled around his account.
A judge on Monday reinstated Djokovic’s visa and ordered his release. However, immigration minister Alex Hawke said that he was still considering whether to use his personal powers to cancel the visa again and expel him from the country.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that authorities were going over Djokovic’s travel declaration as social media posts indicated that he traveled internationally during the key two-week period before arriving in Melbourne from Spain.
In his statement on Wednesday, Djokovic blamed his agent for making an “administrative mistake” in checking a box stating he had not traveled within a fortnight of entering the country.
“This was a human error and certainly not deliberate,” he said in the statement. “We are living in challenging times in a global pandemic and sometimes these mistakes happen.”
Djokovic, who took to the court for a training session at Melbourne Park on Wednesday, said his team has provided additional information to the government to clarify the matter and that his agent “sincerely apologizes” for the error.
However, there are still questions over when Djokovic tested positive for the virus.
Amid the raging controversy, Australia’s immigration minister Alex Hawke said the government was contemplating whether to cancel Djokovic’s visa.
On Wednesday, Hawke’s office said Djokovic’s lawyers have submitted further documents and that the minister was still considering whether to expel the Open’s top-seeded player days before the Grand Slam event is set to commence.
“Mr. Djokovic’s lawyers have recently provided lengthy further submissions and supporting documentation said to be relevant to the possible cancellation of Mr. Djokovic’s visa,” a spokesperson from the office said. “Naturally, this will affect the timeframe for the decision.”
Djokovic is the Australian Open defending champion and top seed.
He has won nine times in Melbourne and would make history if he is able to compete and goes on to make it 10 wins as it would take him to 21 Grand Slam victories, moving him ahead of rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
The Australian Open draw is due to be held on Thursday.
(With inputs from agencies)
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