French sports ministry confirms unvaccinated players won't play French Open

ATP
Monday, 17 January 2022 at 16:30
novak djokovic rg 2021 5
In a twist of events, the French sports ministry has come out confirming that unvaccinated players won't be able to play at the French Open.
Djokovic was initially thought to be able to play at the French Open as country officials confirmed earlier in the week that players will be permitted from entering the country despite not being vaccinated. Obviously, certain quarantine rules would be in play but it was great news for Djokovic who seemed unwilling to get vaccinated for the Australian Open.
However, a recent law in the country prohibits athletes from taking part in sporting activities within the country if they are not vaccinated. The Sports Ministry confirmed on Monday that they won't issue any exemptions to that rule effectively making it impossible to play at the French Open without getting vaccinated.
In a statemenet released they said:
"The rule is simple. The vaccine pass will be imposed, as soon as the law is promulgated, in establishments that were already subject to the health pass. This will apply to everyone who is a spectator or a professional sportsperson. And this until further notice. Now, as far as Roland Garros is concerned, it's in May. The situation may change between now and then and we hope that it will be more favourable. So we'll see, but clearly there's no exemption."
Whether the situation changes dramatically until May remains to be seen but as of now, Djokovic won't be able to play at the French Open without the vaccine.

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