Tennis disaster: Djokovic contracts COVID-19, admits he was wrong
Novak Djokovic and his wife have been diagnosed with coronavirus in the wake of his disastrous tennis tournament.
Croatia’s Borna Coric, Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria and Serbian Viktor Troicki have previously tested positive after playing in Djokovic’s Adria Tour exhibition tournament.
Much of the world advised Djokovic against holding event due to health concerns.
But Djokovic, an anti-vaxxer who has repeatedly said he wouldn’t use a COVID-19 vaccine if it became available, pushed on with the event.
Even as it happened, the world watched on shocked while the athletes and fans apparently refused to follow social distancing protocols.
Over the past few days… pic.twitter.com/NPMVgUS0Ve
— Tumaini Carayol (@tumcarayol) June 21, 2020
“No protocols were followed because Novak knew better,” tennis correspondent Craig Gabriel reported.
Djokovic this morning issued an apology via Instagram, conceding he was wrong.
“I am so deeply sorry our tournament has caused harm,” he wrote.
“Everything the organizers and I did the past month, we did with a pure heart and sincere intentions.
“We believed the tournament met all health protocols and the health of our region seemed in good condition to finally unite people for philanthropic reasons.
“We were wrong and it was too soon.
“I can’t express enough how sorry I am for this and every case of infection.
“I pray for everyone’s full recovery.”
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(Photo by Fred Lee/Getty Images)