Tennis Stars Open May Face The Prospect Of Not Being Vaccinated.

Nikki Attkisson | Last Updated : October 21, 2021

The political head of the state that will host the season-opening major, the Australian Open, has said that tennis players who have not gotten a COVID-19 vaccine would have difficulty obtaining a visa to come into the country for the tournament.

Vaccination requirements for professional athletes participating in domestic sports leagues and individuals working in specific sectors, notably the health care industry, have already been established by Victoria’s Premier Daniel Andrews. On Tuesday, he raised the amount of pressure upon tennis players who were going from other countries.

Tennis Stars Competing In The Australian Open May Face The Prospect Of Not Being Vaccinated Or Receiving A Visa

According to Andrews, “I don’t believe any unvaccinated tennis players will be granted a visa to enter this nation.” “If they were to get a visa, they would very certainly be required to quarantine for a few weeks at a time because no other players would be required to do so.” Professional sport is included on that approved worker list, and those who participate in it must be vaccinated twice.”

Even though Australia is prepared to reopen its international boundaries for the first time in much more than 18 months, the procedure will be a gradual and state-by-state process beginning next month.

Tennis Stars  May Face The Prospect Of Not Being Vaccinated.

It will be dependent on vaccine coverage across the country. People who have received all of their vaccinations will be subject to fewer limitations in Australia than those who have not.

The vaccination controversy has raged in tennis ever since international play resumed after a year-long hiatus due to a worldwide ban. A number of players, including men’s No. 1 Novak Djokovic, have expressed their belief that the choice to get the vaccination should be up to the individual. Others, such as Andy Murray, have argued that it should be required in order to serve the interests of the majority.

To watch matches at the Grand Slam, which concluded on September 12, spectators were needed to provide evidence they had received at least one dosage of the COVID-19 vaccination. Still, players were not obliged to obtain the vaccine.

Victoria Azarenka, a two-time winner at the Australian Open and three-time marathoner at the U.S. Open, felt it conveyed mixed messages. She advanced to the final of the U.S.

Open in 2020 when spectators were not permitted.”It seems a little strange to me that fans are required to get vaccinated, but players are not,” Azarenka remarked. “I believe that at some time, compulsory participation will become unavoidable, just like other leagues do nowadays,” says the author.

Both men’s and women’s tours suggest that all players be vaccinated, although they have not enforced this recommendation thus far. Approximately half of the world’s best male and female tennis players were immunized before the U.S. Open.

In preparation for the Australian Open, which took place earlier this year, all players were required to quarantine for 2 weeks and submit to frequent testing in accordance with Australia’s stringent COVID-19 rules.

Everyone who came back positive or was considered close to a positively identified case, which in some instances meant merely to be on the same charter aircraft, was subjected to a strict lockdown. Those players were not permitted to leave their respective hotel rooms for any reason.


Nikki Attkisson

With over 15 years as a practicing journalist, Nikki Attkisson found herself at Powdersville Post now after working at several other publications. She is an award-winning journalist with an entrepreneurial spirit and worked as a journalist covering technology, innovation, environmental issues, politics, health etc. Nikki Attkisson has also worked on product development, content strategy, and editorial management for numerous media companies. She began her career at local news stations and worked as a reporter in national newspapers.

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