Tennis
Alex De Minaur denies paying for fake vaccination certificate
(Barcelona) Australian tennis player Alex De Minaur has denied any wrongdoing after being linked to a Spanish police investigation into people suspected of paying for fake COVID-19 vaccination certificates.
Spanish media reported that De Minaur was among 2,200 people who national police say are being investigated for paying a criminal network for fake certificates.
“I want it to be 100% clear that I received my second dose, that I have a completely valid, accurate and truthful vaccination record,” wrote De Minaur, 23, whose mother is Spanish, on Twitter.
National police did not confirm his name or that of anyone else when asked by The Associated Press.
De Minaur has revealed he received his first shot in London last year before getting his second shot at La Paz Hospital in Madrid.
The player ranked at 32and rang added in its statement that “the hospital (La Paz) is under investigation for providing falsified COVID certificates to some of its patients. »
Police, however, said the hospital was not being investigated, but rather the network behind it and its alleged clients.
On Tuesday, the police announced that they had arrested four other individuals, in addition to the seven arrested in January, suspected of belonging to the network. The network allegedly recruited healthcare workers to illegally register the names of its clients in the Spanish vaccination register, allowing them to receive a vaccination certificate without having been vaccinated.
Spanish police said in January that they discovered the leaders of the network operating from France and informed the French police of their identity.
The investigation is ongoing.
De Minaur played at the Australian Open last month, losing in the fourth round to Jannik Sinner. Novak Djokovic, the world No. 1, was expelled from Australia before the tournament due to his non-vaccination.
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Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.