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Tennis star Novak Djokovic is sticking to his guns.
After last month’s COVID-19 controversy which cost him the opportunity to defend his title at the Australian Open and led to his deportation from the country, Djokovic says he will still not be getting the vaccine.
Djokovic spoke to BBC to address the situation, saying he will even skip out on other Grand Slam tournaments if they have vaccine mandates.
“Yes,” Djokovic said, “that is the price that I’m willing to pay.”
Djokovic has been criticized for being “anti-vax,” but he insists that is not the case.
I was never against vaccination, but I’ve always supported the freedom to choose what you put in your body,” he said. “Principles of decision making on my body are more important than any title or anything else. I’m trying to be in tune with my body as much as I possibly can.”
Whether upcoming tournaments like the French Open or Wimbledon will require vaccination to compete remains to be seen, but if they do it looks like they will once again be missing the No. 1 men’s player in the world.
