The capacity for the matches of the Open de Australia will be capped at 50%, in the face of a continuing rise in Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations, it was announced Thursday.
Masks will also be mandatory in the first tournament Grand Slam of the year, which begins on Monday, except when eating or drinking, and spectators must maintain social distance indoors.
“This update of measures for the Open de Australia mean fans, players and staff alike should have a fantastic Covid-free event,” Victoria State Tourism Minister Jaala Pulford said in a statement.
A similar cap was imposed at last year’s tournament at the complex Melbourne Park, before a five-day lockdown was ordered in the city to contain an outbreak of the coronavirus that barred public access.
Matches were held in empty stadiums and fans were eventually able to return in small numbers.
Victoria reported on Thursday (local time) a record number of 953 patients hospitalized for Covid-19 and more than 220,000 active cases in the state.
The staff and players of the Open de Australia they must be vaccinated against the coronavirus, but world tennis number one Novak Djokovic is not, sparking a global incident.
The tennis player arrived in Australia a week ago with a medical exemption because he tested positive for Covid-19 on December 16, but the immigration authorities considered that the exemption was not valid, for which they canceled the visa and sent him to a center migrant detention.
The tennis player’s lawyers managed to reverse the annulment of the visa on Monday in court, but his stay in the tournament depends on what the Australian Immigration Minister Alex Hawke decides.
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