Serbian tennis star says \u2018it\u2019s something I stand for\u2019 after receiving backlash
\nPARIS
\nNovak Djokovic defiantly insisted on Wednesday \u201cit\u2019s something I stand for\u201d regarding the controversy over his explosive comments about Kosovo earlier this week at the French Open.
\nOn Monday, the 22-time Grand Slam champion wrote \u201cKosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence\u201d on a TV camera after his first match at Roland Garros.
\n\u201cI would say it again, but I don\u2019t need to because you have my quotes,\u201d he said after making the third round on Wednesday with a straights sets win over Marton Fucsovics.
\n\u201cI\u2019m aware that a lot of people would disagree, but it is what it is. It\u2019s something that I stand for. So that\u2019s all.\u201d
\nDjokovic had defended his message in comments to Serb media, saying that Kosovo is Serbia\u2019s \u201ccradle, our stronghold\u201d.
\nThe International Tennis Federation (ITF), the governing body of the sport, said they had received a request from the Kosovo Tennis Federation demanding Djokovic be sanctioned over his actions.
\nHowever, they pointed out that such statements do not contravene regulations.
\n\u201cRules for player conduct at a Grand Slam event are governed by the Grand Slam rulebook, administered by the relevant organiser and regulator. There is no provision in this that prohibits political statements,\u201d an ITF spokesman told AFP.
\nDjokovic was criticised for his comments about recent clashes in Kosovo by French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera who said he \u201cshouldn\u2019t get involved\u201d.
\nOudea-Castera told broadcaster France 2 that Djokovic\u2019s message was \u201cnot appropriate, clearly\u201d.
\n\u201cIt was a message that is very activist, that is very political.\u201d
\nThe Kosovo Olympic Committee (KOC) accused Djokovic of \u201cstirring up\u201d political tensions, a spokesman told AFP.
\nDjokovic \u201cbreached the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter regarding political neutrality and involved yet another political statement in sports\u201d, the KOC wrote in a letter sent to the IOC on Tuesday.
\nKOC head Ismet Krasniqi sought that the IOC initiates disciplinary proceedings against Djokovic, said the letter posted on its Facebook.
\nSuch \u201cbehaviour cannot be tolerated as it sets a dangerous precedent that sports can be used as a platform for political messages, agendas and propaganda\u201d, the letter quoted Krasniqi as saying.
\nUkrainian player Elina Svitolina said Djokovic should be free to \u201csay his opinion\u201d.
\nSvitolina, who has repeatedly spoken out over tennis\u2019 response to Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, believes players should be able to talk publicly about political issues.
\n\u201cWe are living in the free world, so why not say your opinion on something?,\u201d said Svitolina.
\n\u201cI feel like if you stand for something, you think that this is the way, you should say.
\n\u201cI mean, if you are with a friend sitting, talking, you\u2019re going to say your opinion, he is going to say his opinion. So why not?\u201d
\nThirty peacekeepers from a NATO-led force in Kosovo were injured in clashes with ethnic Serb demonstrators on Monday during protests about the installation of ethnic Albanian mayors in northern Kosovo.
\nKosovo, mostly populated by Muslim ethnic Albanians, broke away from the then-Yugoslavia in the late 1990s and declared independence in 2008, in a move that has never been accepted by neighbouring Christian-majority Serbia or its ally Russia<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Serbian tennis star says \u2018it\u2019s something I stand for\u2019 after receiving backlash PARIS Novak Djokovic defiantly insisted on Wednesday \u201cit\u2019s something I stand for\u201d regarding the controversy over his explosive comments about Kosovo earlier this week at the French Open. On Monday, the 22-time Grand Slam champion wrote \u201cKosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-334942","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n