The Novak saga

General Gibberish Forums The Sports Bar
905

You’re projecting there.
He applied for the medical exemption (which other tennis players had the right to do as well).
They reviewed the medical exemption based on what was provided to them. You could get an exemption if you were infected in the last few months (because such an event restricts the capability of getting vaxxed). Vic Gov and Tennis Australia thought it was that way. Feds didn’t. Maybe they let them know well enough, maybe it changed a long the way and got confusing.
Based on what was provided, he met the requirements of the medical exemption.
The validity of the evidence needed to verified at the border on entry.
That’s pretty much consistent with any international travel. You do get 'pre approval for a visa, but you can be held at the border if it is suspect.

Unfortunately…
The court case didn’t argue all the issues around the test result. It was left within the bounds of process at the border. Maybe the process for the ‘pre approval’ needed to be run past the Fed Gov medical officer rather than ‘leaving it up to the states’.

If Vic Gov wanted him in, they would have just sponsored him through. And it wouldn’t have been an issue. But Vic Gov said they weren’t sponsoring everyone. Entry at the border is a Federal Issue. Medical exemption is a medical issue. Politics shouldn’t come into it.

906

He actually did go here so jokes on you :sweat_smile:

I remember it cos my office at our manufacturing site is in Braybrook and I went there for lunch that day and must have missed him by about 15 minutes. He’d just won the Aus Open a day or so earlier.

He went to Melbourne City Mission in Braybrook which is just outside Central West Plaza where Dimmeys is.

Novak Djokovic Foundation donates $20,000 to Melbourne City Mission early childhood learning program

Posted Mon 1 Feb 2016 at 4:13pmMonday 1 Feb 2016 at 4:13pm

Novak Djokovic at a childcare centre

Novak Djokovic joined young children at the Braybrook centre.

Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article

COPYSHARE

Novak Djokovic’s charitable foundation has donated $20,000 to Melbourne City Mission’s early childhood education program to help disadvantaged children.

The money will go towards the mission’s early years supported playgroup program, based in the outer suburbs of Braybrook and Doreen.

A day after his win at the Australian Open, the 28-year-old, who has a 15-month-old son, happily played with children during a visit to the Braybrook centre, signing autographs and even going outside for a hit of tennis.

Later, he spoke to staff and congratulated them on the work they did.

“Early childhood education gives children a chance to respond strongly to any challenge and become winners in any field,” Djokovic said in an earlier statement.

“Melbourne City Mission is a leader in providing innovative and effective early childhood programs, and we’re very happy to contribute towards their work in this area.”

Melbourne City Mission interim chief executive Liz Bishop said the funding would help the organisation provide a safe, stable and enjoyable environment for children.

Novak Djokovic plays with a child

Djokovic said early childhood learning helped kids respond to challenges in life.

“Early support for children and their families who are experiencing poverty, homelessness, social and cultural disconnection, serious health issues or other disadvantages makes the biggest difference to a child’s long-term opportunities in their school years and later life,” she said.

"We rely on the generosity of donations such as this, in order to be able to offer families this vital support.

“We thank the Novak Djokovic Foundation for its support, and for its worldwide commitment to early childhood education.”

The Novak Djokovic Foundation was created in 2007 with the aim of investing in early childhood development programs.

It said while its main focus was in Djokovic’s home of Serbia, work was also carried out internationally.

The world number one also has links with UNICEF.

7 Likes
907

holy ■■■■

1 Like
908

Singapore doesn’t really do sport. They have no facilities that would be close to hosting a grand slam. China would be the biggest risk of taking on the event - although given the last 2 years it’s unlikely.

1 Like
909

Manufactured like Canberra yes. But to live there it was a whole lot of fun pre Covid.

1 Like
910

Although the momentum expressed in the media, talkback, leaks to journos etc etc all point towards deportation, I think it’s all theatre contrived in an attempt to save face and he’ll stay and play.

5 Likes
911

You can chew gum here, you just can’t buy it. Think the ban on long hair was lifted in the 90s.

1 Like
912

Gum can be chewed if it’s Nicorette. The US government forced Singapore’s hand in a trade agreement.

Also you’re showing your age with the long hair rule!

913

Shanghai would be great…but China,…Maybe Hong Kong would be slightly better, or Japan.

Argentina would be mental going off Davis cup matches.

Singapore sounds like a decent option.

2 Likes
914

Its pretty clear that even reputed “a-holes” can do good things at times.

915

Cue the ‘20k is like $20 for him, comments’ lol.
But yeah he has given to a number of charities including a donation to the bushfire appeal here and covid relief in Italy.
Giving money doesn’t automatically mean you’re a good person but I don’t believe he is an inherently evil or bad person as is made out. Ignorant and a bit of a tool at times, sure.

4 Likes
916

Agree, there is more passion for shopping and eating than sport. Maybe if they ran the event at a shopping centre, it might get some interest. On the heat issue, it isnt as hot as Melbourne during summer, but the humidity would make it pretty tough. On infrastructure, if the opportunity presented itself, they would replicate Melb Park pretty quickly. Stuff just gets done here and things work, which is one of the main attractions of the joint.

917

They do have the stadium on the other side of Garden by the Bay. It’s a basketball stadium where the Singapore Slingers used to play.
With some money thrown at it (they have the economy to do that) they could do something with the precinct to be able to hold a major tennis event.

Before they do commit the money to it, they’d want to be assured they could win it. The bugger with it is that the precinct won’t be used for many other items outside of tennis tournament time. Concerts are held elsewhere there. Basketball isn’t as big as it is here

As you say, it just isn’t a sporting attraction (aside from the GP).

918

If Australia wants to run a tennis tournament, they can. No one can “strip” Australia of its #1 tennis tournament.
What can happen is the ATP players could boycott it.
But they are professionals and when winners are paid $4.4million, with a total of $75M up for grabs, its hard for players to discover some kind of “principle” bought about by confusion due to a worldwide pandemic.

919

So newscorp going with the ‘it’s better to be first than right’ principle, or qua?

920

image
image1080×1080 73.6 KB

14 Likes
921

image

2 Likes
922

All one needs to think of is ~200 sqm blocks that are developed >35kms away from our CBD’s to know how dodgy those ■■■■■■ are. All about rates yet they do nothing of benefit for the locals municipalities with that cash.

923

They could strip it of its Grand Slam status and give that status to the hmmmm… China open, the New Zealand Open, the Japan open or Indonesian open….

924

@bigallan does the immigration minister have a certain time frame to make any decision on visas, or can he just not make a decision and not tell anyone.

I suppose the question is if Djokovic has a valid visa at present then Hawke can just not do anything, but doesn’t have to tell anyone he hasn’t done anything. Have I got that right?