Tennis star Novak Djokovic is reported to be back in immigration detention after his legal challenge to avoid being deported from Australia for being unvaccinated for COVID-19 was moved to a higher court.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke on Friday blocked the 34-year-old Serb’s visa, which was originally revoked when he landed at a Melbourne airport on Jan. 5.
His lawyers filed documents in court on Saturday that revealed Hawke had stated that “Djokovic is perceived by some as a talisman of a community of anti-vaccination sentiment.” Djokovic had “previously stated he wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine” to compete in tournaments. On Saturday, Justice David O’Callaghan suggested a full bench rather than a single judge hear the case on Sunday. A full bench is three or five judges.
Djokovic has won the past three Australian Opens, part of his overall Grand Slam haul of 20 championships. He is tied with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer for the most by a man in history. Morrison himself welcomed Djokovic’s pending deportation. The episode has touched a nerve in Australia, and particularly in Victoria state, where locals went through hundreds of days of lockdowns during the worst of the pandemic.
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