Djokovic, a 34-year-old Serb who is ranked No. 1, missed the
Australian Open in January after being deported from that country because he
was not vaccinated against the illness caused by the coronavirus that has led
to the deaths of millions during the pandemic that began in 2020.
During the annual spring briefing ahead of Wimbledon, which
starts on June 27, Bolton said that “whilst, of course, it is encouraged” that
all players get vaccinated, “it will not be a condition of entry to compete” at
the grass-court Grand Slam tournament this year.
Djokovic, in addition to being unable to defend his
championship at Melbourne Park after an 11-day legal saga over whether he could
remain in Australia, had to sit out tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami
because he couldn’t travel to the United States as a foreigner who is
unvaccinated.
The U.S. Tennis Association has said that it will follow
whatever governmental rules are in place regarding COVID-19 vaccination status
when the U.S. Open is held starting in late August.
Djokovic — who has said he got COVID-19 twice, once each in
2020 and 2021 — owns 20 Grand Slam singles titles, tied with Roger Federer for
the second-most for a man. They trail Rafael Nadal, who won his 21st at the
Australian Open.
Six of Djokovic’s trophies came at Wimbledon, including
victories each of the past three times the tournament was held — in 2018, 2019
and 2021. It was not held in 2020 because of the pandemic.
After what happened in Australia, Djokovic said he would be
willing to sit out other Grand Slam tournaments if getting vaccinated were a
requirement to compete. The next major event is the French Open, which begins
on May 22, and tournament director Amelie Mauresmo said last month there was
nothing preventing Djokovic from defending his 2021 title in Paris.
The Italian Open, a clay-court tune-up for Roland Garros,
also has said Djokovic can play there next month. -AP
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