MELBOURNE, Oct 12 (BNA) – Tennis players planning to compete in the Australian Open at Melbourne Park should get vaccinated against COVID-19 to give themselves the best chance of playing a Grand Slam, an Australian government official said.
The state of Victoria, of which Melbourne is the capital, has introduced a vaccine mandate for all professional athletes, but authorities have yet to clarify whether athletes from overseas or other Australian states should be vaccinated, Reuters reports.
Victoria’s Sports Minister Martin Bakula urged the players not to leave any doubt.
“If I’m an ATP or WTA player, I’ll get vaccinated,” Bakula told local radio station SEN.
“This will give them the best chance of playing at the Australian Open with the minimum restrictions that may be in place for these people.”
The women’s WTA tour and the ATP tour have urged players to get vaccinated but some have expressed reservations, including Australian Open men’s champion Novak Djokovic, who opposes vaccine mandates.
Tennis Australia, which organizes the Grand Slam tournament, has not revealed any arrangements for the players for the upcoming tournament in January.
But fully vaccinated players are expected to have more freedoms of movement and may be able to avoid the country’s mandatory 14-day quarantine upon arrival.
Australia’s borders remain virtually closed to non-residents, and Bakula said he does not know if unvaccinated people will be allowed into the country by the time the Australian Open begins on January 17.
“I think this will be a topic of discussion in the national cabinet and in the middle of the federal cabinet,” he said.
“As to the rules that might apply around the Australian Open, specifically, we are in discussions with Tennis Australia and the Department of Health about that.”
Melbourne has been on lockdown for months as authorities struggle to control an outbreak of the highly contagious Delta species while vaccines are being rolled out. Read more
Victoria will lift some lockdown restrictions when 70% of adults are fully vaccinated, which should be in late October according to official forecasts.