Each Formula 1 driver and team member must be “compliant” with border rules when they enter Australia for the first time since 2020 this April, as the Australian Grand Prix returns on the calendar after two years of absence.
This was the warning made by Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix chief Andrew Westacott, who pointed out that the city’s farcical Novak Djokovic situation should not be repeated in a few months when teams head to Albert Park for the Formula 1 event:
“It’s a massive global story, and it’s been out there for every sport fan and every sport journalist across the globe to report on, and therefore it’s brought focus on Melbourne and focus on the issue,” he said, as reported by Sydney Morning Herald – “Because of the outcome of that issue, it hasn’t necessarily been observed favourably in the same way you get positive kudos at the end of staging these wonderful tournaments. Major events are a double-edged sword, and you always see this in the lead-up to and the staging of massive events, be it F1, grand slams, majors in golf, Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games. If you stage them well, you get pats on the back, and if you stage them poorly or there are issues, you’re judged in the court of public opinion. That’s what has happened here, and it’s up to sports fans or sports journalists [to] say whether we’ve lost our gloss. But there’s no doubt people have been sitting in judgement and observing it in many areas, and I know that because we deal with a lot of people on a global basis.” – he added.
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Australian Grand Prix CEO Andrew Westacott confirmed that the situation does not bode well with Melbourne’s claim of being a welcoming sports capital of the world, given the fact that the famous tennis player Novak Djokovic was initially granted a medical exemption to enter Australia and take part in the competitions, before his visa was eventually revoked by the federal government just a few days ahead of the Australian Open. The immigration minister explained that Novak Djokovic decision not to get vaccinated could determine Australians to similarly reject the covid jab.
Australian Grand Prix boss Andrew Westacott sent a clear message ahead of the 2022 Formula 1 Grand Prix: there will be no grey areas or last-minute deportations.
“If you look at the cancellation of our event on March 13, 2020, and the staging of the next event, which will be April 2022, there have been 41 events around the world staged, and in every one of those jurisdictions there have been different stages of the pandemic and different border entry conditions. In every one of those, Formula 1 has been able to operate and retain business continuity. It’s a mandatory requirement for the sport and the travelling contingent to be compliant at the points of entry, and they’ll be compliant at the point of entry in Australia and Melbourne.” – he concluded.
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