“Novak Djokovic isn’t asking for special treatment, I think it's incredible that he's standing by his principles” - Political journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer on Piers Morgan's show
The news of Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon victory was quickly followed by his vaccination status once again, ahead of the upcoming US Open. He won his 21st Grand Slam title at SW19, taking him past Roger Federer’s tally of 20 Majors and one behind Rafael Nadal.
While the Serb could potentially go level with Nadal at Flushing Meadows, his unvaccinated status currently prevents him from entering New York to compete at the year’s final Major.
In the US Government’s recently issued rules and regulations for foreign travelers, there was no relief for unvaccinated people who wanted to enter the country. While travelers do not have to produce negative test results, they will be required to show proof of vaccination.
While Djokovic’s only hope is to get a special exemption, tournament organizers have made it clear that they will not seek exemptions for unvaccinated players.
Speaking on the Piers Morgan Uncensored show, political journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer defended the 35-year-old's stance on vaccinations.
“You should be able to make a choice. Bodily autonomy is the most fundamental human right. Novak Djokovic isn’t asking for special treatment. He's not asking for special treatment, he's simply said ‘I'm not vaccinated, I'm not showing my vaccine status and therefore I can't play in the US open it.’ I think it's incredible that he's standing by his principles. He's a young healthy man,” she said.
“The whole point is [that] it is a stupid rule. Your vaccine protects you, and anyone who is taking a vaccine it protects them. We know with Omicron, [the vaccine] doesn't actually provide much protection at all from infection. It does protect you from getting seriously ill and from dying,” she added.
"You should be able to make a choice. Bodily autonomy is the most fundamental human right."
Julia Hartley-Brewer thinks "it's incredible" Novak Djokovic is "standing by his principles" by not revealing his vaccination status.
@JuliaHB1 | @piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #piersmorgan https://t.co/CHh8pJHSAy
The show’s host Piers Morgan said that Djokovic has to abide by the rules, irrespective of his beliefs.
“I don't think you should be allowed to go anywhere near the US Open. Because, if I want to go to America, which I will be quite soon, I have to take a test and show my vaccinations dates, that's it,” he said.
While agreeing with Morgan, Hartley-Brewer pointed to the irony of players getting exemptions to travel and compete at tournaments with the help of exemptions in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Well, he has to abide by the rules, the rules everyone else has. Although, interestingly, in 2020 everyone seemed quite happy for sportsmen and women to have completely different rules than the rest of us, being able to travel to things like the Australian Open when other people couldn't even get home to see their families,” she pointed out.
On being pointed out that athletes are role models for society, Hartley-Brewer pointed to the hypocrisy of the English football players who take a knee in support of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement while gearing up to participate in the World Cup that’s being held in Qatar.
“A role model for people? Like the England football team, who take a knee for Black Lives Matter but then happily go and compete in the World Cup in Qatar?” she asked.
“I am not vaccinated and I'm not planning to get vaccinated” - Novak Djokovic
Speaking at a press conference after winning his seventh Wimbledon title, Novak Djokovic confirmed that he has no plans to get vaccinated and that he will not be competing at the US Open unless the restrictions are lifted.
“I am not vaccinated and I'm not planning to get vaccinated. So the only good news I can have is them removing the mandated green vaccine card or whatever you call it to enter [the] United States [of America] or exemption,” Djokovic said.
“I don't think [an] exemption is realistically possible. If that is [a] possibility, I don't know what exemption would be about. I don't know. I don't have much answers there,” he added.
Tennis star Novak Djokovic reaffirms his position He is against covid vaccination. After winning Wimbledon, he hopes to be released from mandates at the US Open. https://t.co/jSXHCjO95n