Novak Djokovic saw the mask-free event in Serbia in December when he said he tested positive for COVID

Serbian tennis star and anti-vaxxer Novak Djokovic revealed in a court filing on Friday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 on 16 December, arguing that his recovery from the virus had made him eligible to enter Australia despite being unvaccinated.

It also apparently made him eligible for more work the next day, his presumptive positive test.

Photos posted by the Serbian Post, the Serbian postal service, the Belgrade Tennis Association and Djokovic himself show the athlete appearing multiple times without a mask across Serbia on December 16 and date December 17, including at an event with many young children. Some of the photos were first reported by Daily mail.

Djokovic was given a commemorative stamp by the Serbian postal service on December 16, the day he is believed to have tested positive. Photos published by the Post of Serbia show Djokovic appearing with the leader of the organization himself, both without a mask.

“It is a great honor for the Post of Serbia to present, in the most important year of Novak Djokovic’s career, a philatelic issue dedicated to our greatest athlete of all time,” said Zoran. Đorđević, the service’s chief executive officer, said in the statement. “With gratitude to Novak for honoring us with his presence today at the ceremony at the PTT Museum, and on behalf of the staff of the Post Office, I wish him further success in his career. mine.”

Djokovic then posted the photos to his own social media platforms the next day, thanking the organization for the “rare gift”.

“I’m humble!!” he wrote on Twitter.

Djokovic then appeared at a conference for his foundation that evening, speaking to a crowd indoors and without a mask. The next day, he appeared at an event organized by the Belgrade Tennis Association, hugging and posing with children during an awards ceremony — all while remaining undisclosed.

The revelations come when Djokovic has stuck in a legal dispute with Australia after the country canceled his visa for the Australian Open because he did not provide enough evidence to be exempt from the vaccine.

Djokovic’s lawyers have appealed the decision, arguing that the federal government has misinterpreted the rules for people who have had a previous COVID-19 case within six months. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the government’s decision was “simply a matter of following the rules”. The risks for Djokovic are many – if he loses the case, he risks being banned from domestic competition for up to three years.

A representative for Djokovic did not respond to The Daily Beast’s request for comment on exactly when the athlete received his test results in December.