Former Minister of Sports of Australia: I doubt the correctness of the decision to allow Russian tennis players to the Australian Open

Former Minister for Sports of Australia Richard Colbeck believes that the organizers Australian Open Russian and Belarusian tennis players should not have been allowed to the tournament because of the military aggression of their countries against Ukraine.

“The decision that I now question is to let Daniil Medvedev play. I don’t think any of the Russians should play.”

“Sport is one of those things that can send a message to a country. I have had this point of view for a long time. We cannot soften our position on this matter. The Russians are still doing outrageous things. I congratulate Wimbledon on the position they have taken,” said the ex-minister.

At the same time, the politician approves the return of former world number one Novak Djokovic to the tournament, believing that the situation has changed significantly a year after the incident. Recall that in January, a Serb had his visa canceled for forging medical documents, and was banned from entering the country for three years. However, in the fall, the decision was revised, and Djokovic flew to Australia.

Recall that in April, the organizers of Wimbledon decided to remove Russian and Belarusian tennis players from participation in the tournament in connection with the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine. The decision to remove athletes from Russia and Belarus was supported by Andy Murray, as well as the Tennis Federation of Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland.

Novak Djokovic and Andrei Rublev opposed the inadmissibility of representatives of the aggressor countries to Wimbledon. The ATP has filed a lawsuit against the National Tennis Governing Body in the UK, demanding a million dollars for the suspension of tennis players from Russia and Belarus.