“Every person has the right to decide in the matter of their health”- Novak Djokovic reveals the reason behind his controversial vaccine stance
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Novak Djokovic
During an interview with BBC recently, Novak Djokovic revealed that he wasn’t vaccinated yet and has no plans to do so, and is ready to miss tournaments as a result. His decision came across as rather unnatural because Djokovic has always proclaimed his desire to win more titles and hunger to win matches. His stern vaccination stance might put his career in jeopardy, but the Serbian is still adamant about not getting vaccinated.
During a recent interview with Serbian media outlet RTS, Djokovic revealed the reason why he choose to not get vaccinated. The 20-time Major winner said he is vigilant about anything that he decides to inject into his body, even a vaccine. He said he’ll stick to his instincts and bear the consequences of his decision.
“As an elite athlete, I want to triple-check everything that enters my body, something changes for 0.5% in my body, I feel it. I am just cautious before making any decisions, I am taking my time and keeping my mind open. I will live with the consequences,” he said.
He also added that everyone has a free will to make their own choice when it comes to health, but he was adamant that with his decisions he was not promoting any ‘anti-vax’ behavior and hoped others would respect his decision for being cautious about himself.
“I stand for choice and the autonomy of every individual, that every person has the right to decide in the matter of their health. I don’t like being labeled and put in the same category with certain initiatives or movements, I never said I support any of those. I have always tried to respect everybody’s choices, I hope that people can respect mine as well,” he added.
“An Olympic medal, especially gold“- Novak Djokovic on his future goals
Djokovic might have won every title there is to win in tennis, but an Olympic gold medal remains elusive for the Serbian who failed to bag a podium in the last three editions. He won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics but never came close to being an Olympic champion. He lost in the bronze medal match at the 2012 and 2020 Olympics and crashed out in the first round at the 2016 Rio Olympics. But Djokovic said he is not ready to give up without a fight and will be having another go at it in 2024.
“An Olympic medal, especially gold, is always a big wish. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to fight for it in the past. I plan to be in Paris in 2024. I rewound my match with Zverev in Tokyo many times, trying to figure out what went wrong. I played superbly up to that point, but I did feel I was running on fumes, both mentally and physically,” Djokovic recalled his semi-final defeat to Alexander Zverev at Tokyo 2020.
Djokovic added that he is keen to put all things behind him and is ready to channel all this energy and is eager to make a good start at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
“I choose to focus on things I’ve already achieved and to be grateful for it I don’t know what the future brings, I hope for the best and I feel that I still have time. Everything that has happened will affect my return in Dubai. I will try to channel all this energy, to turn it into fuel both mentally and physically. There is extra motivation, surely,” he added.
Also read: ‘Good News!’ Italian Sports Minister makes an Important Statement favoring Novak Djokovic
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T Rushitha
(360 Articles Published)