Tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams were seen arriving in training in Adelaide before the Australian Open.
The superstar’s sisters were taken by mini-bus to the tennis training center on Monday afternoon together with Serena’s coach Patrick Mouratoglou.
Together with their fitness clothing, the former no. World Cup 1 and Mouratoglou wore face masks, in accordance with Covid-19 health mandates in South Australia for players who were allowed to practice in quarantine.
The area was marked as a “red zone without access”, with health officials and state police guarding the storage area as tennis stars arrived.
Venus and Serena Williams were spotted for the first time this year, arriving to train in Adelaide before the Australian opening
The 23-time Grand Slam winner waited next to the vehicle for her coach Patrick Mouratoglou to get out of the vehicle from the front seats.
The sports sisters were transported to the tennis center on Monday afternoon by a white mini-bus, which seemed to be carrying other tennis enthusiasts.
Venus walked in front of her companions, carrying a sports bag as she headed to the unit to begin preparations for the Feb. 8 tournament and an exhibition competition ahead of it.
Her younger sister was left waiting for her coach as he unloaded rockets and other equipment from the white van.
The pair could be seen exchanging words as Mouratoglou loaded his bags on his shoulder before passing the police officers guarding the gate to enter the center.
The Grand Slam tournament is in crisis three weeks before the first ball is served with 72 tennis stars isolated in hotel rooms for 14 days and unable to practice.
Five passengers on three charter flights to Melbourne carrying players, support staff and broadcast crews have now tested positive for the virus in the past week.
Infected passengers, including a flight attendant, the coach of Canadian tennis star Bianca Andreescu and a member of a broadcast crew, tested negative before their flights.
Due to Australia’s strict Covid protocols, affected players will now be confined to their hotel rooms for the next 14 days, despite being initially told they could leave for five hours a day to train.
The 23-time Grand Slam winner and her coach could be seen wearing a discussion through their mask next to the white van
Serena was sitting next to Mouratoglou as she loaded her arms with rockets and other tennis equipment from the trunk of the vehicle.
Despite growing pressure from restorable international players furious at being quarantined, Australian Open boss Craig Tiley has ruled out delaying the grand slam of tennis.
He said they would consider adjusting the schedule for the ATP and WTA tournaments, which begin in Melbourne on January 31 and February 1.
All international players were initially exempted from training for up to five hours a day, however, test results forced the two affected flights to become stricter in quarantine under Victorian government orders, causing complaints of unfair advantage to others.
However, Prime Minister Steven Marshall has warned tennis stars and support staff currently in quarantine in Adelaide will be subject to strict coronavirus measures in South Australia if any tests are positive ahead of an event this month. .
The Williams sisters and other world players, including Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Naomi Osaka, flew to Adelaide last week before a one-day exhibition tour at Memorial Drive on January 29th.
All are in hotel quarantine and have special arrangements to allow them to train in the next two weeks.
Prime Minister Steven Marshall says there is no suggestion that any of the players or their support crews did not give positive results at this stage.
Police officers and state health officials could be seen guarding the storage area, which was displayed in a “red zone without access”
But he said that if they do, they will be moved to the dedicated Adelaide Covid-19 headquarters, along with other active infections.
“There is very close control around people who have come to South Australia,” Mr Marshall said on Sunday.
“We have very strict protocols for anyone who is infected with coronavirus.
“The reality is that it would be impossible for someone who contracted this disease to be in public.
“We should have them under safe surveillance, there would be no training for them.”
Australia’s international borders have been closed since March 20, and only citizens and permanent residents are allowed access, unless they have exemptions – as tennis players do.
Everyone on the site, including the tennis stars, appeared to be wearing face masks in accordance with the health recommendations of the South Australian government.
All participants must enter a 14-day mandatory quarantine at the hotel, with Covid tests on the second and 11th day, but players can train for five hours a day at that time.
However, celebrities around the world were robbed of any real chance of success at the Australian Open after positive Covid tests on three charter flights to Melbourne.
Instead of practicing on the field five hours a day like their competitors, players like Angelique Kerber and Kei Nishikori cannot leave their rooms.
Uruguayan veteran player Pablo Cuevas was filmed hitting a tennis ball on a mattress pressed against the hotel wall in a desperate attempt to keep in touch.
Spaniard Carreno Busta was horrified by the inedible food and was forbidden to order packaged food, while Kazakhstan’s number one Yulia Putintseva found a mouse spinning around her room.
Djokovic, who flew not subject to the same quarantine, asked Tennis Australia chief Craig Tiley to fill a list of requests.
After Mouratoglou packed his bags, Serena and the coach began to join the unit.
COVID-19 quarantine commissioner Emma Cassar said there had been cases of “provocative behavior” by limited players and support staff, with some players going on social media to express outrage over the quarantine rules.
She cited two cases when they opened their doors to have a conversation or shout in the hallway
Cassar warned that they could be fined up to $ 20,000 or that offenders transferred to the care complex hotel where they have a police officer stationed in front of the door.
Tiley said the recent threat of the virus strain in the UK has changed the situation, but insisted the players knew there was a risk of isolation.
Players receive little sympathy from many Australians, with thousands of compatriots unable to travel home, while many Victorians are currently imprisoned outside the state.
Players will receive a minimum of $ 100,000 if they participate in the main draw of the Australian Open.
Time is running out and more players need to arrive who could be quarantined and eliminated before round 1.
Venus took a black back as she headed downtown to prepare for the Feb. 8 Grand Slam tournament.
Victorian Prime Minister Daniel Andrews has been repeatedly warned in November by tennis officials and star players that this will happen when players’ arrival dates are discussed.
It was unclear in early December whether the tournament would go right ahead and then pushed back three weeks and the postponement continued.
The last plane affected was a Qatar Airways flight from Doha on Saturday morning, where one passenger was infected – destroying the Grand Slam training of 25 other players, including an Australian.
The Victorian government is facing growing criticism over its decision to throw 1,200 players and international officials to the tournament at the last minute.
Infections threaten to derail plans to start opening in time after Mr Andrews turned down the tour by three weeks.
From political criticism to fiery tirades from co-opted players, tournament and state government officials are facing a race against time to set a planned start date for February 8th.
Tournament organizers face increasing defiance from the 72 players who can still go out and train for five hours a day, as previously agreed.