Australian Open: Minister of Sport - "I would get vaccinated"
The sports minister of the Australian state of Victoria has made an urgent appeal to tennis professionals. Entry of unvaccinated players cannot be guaranteed.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Oct 12, 2021, 05:36 pm
Nothing specific is rarely known, and certainly not the actual number of vaccinated players on the professional tennis tour. Now the question of whether you can get vaccinated against the corona virus is of a highly personal nature. Particularly in connection with the Australian Open, which is due at the beginning of next year, the vaccination status will probably have an impact on the participation rights.
The latest water level reports in general: On the ATP tour, the percentage eta would be 65 percent of the players, for women it is less, but at least more than half. And in particular: Petra Kvitova announced in Indian Wells that she has been vaccinated and that she thinks her decision is the right one. And Dominic Thiem would like to have full vaccination protection by the end of November, in the best case with a new vaccine from Novavax.
Angelique Kerber in tough quarantine in 2021
It can be assumed that the convalescent Austrian will need this too. The relevant reports from Down Under change in nuances, but the most recent from the Sports Minister of the State of Victoria, Martin Pakula, is fairly clear. "Last year all players had to go into a 14-day quarantine," Pakula recalled on Tuesday. “At the moment it looks like different rules will apply to vaccinated and unvaccinated people entering our country. I don't think that an exception will be made here for the tennis professionals. "
In fact, most of the field of players was allowed to leave the hotel and train for a total of five hours during the quarantine. Only a few unfortunate people, on whose flight a passenger tested positive, really had to stay in the room for two weeks. Angelique Kerber was one of them.
“I think if I were a WTA player or an ATP player, I would get vaccinated,” Pakula continued. "That would give them the best chance to play the Australian Open with minimal restrictions." Pakula still had no answer as to whether unvaccinated players were generally not allowed to enter the country. This decision does not lie with the regional governments. But with the one in the capital Canberra.