Abstract
The 2021 Australian Open was like no other previous edition of the Grand Slam tennis event. Australia had virtually closed its borders due to the COVID-19 pandemic and had cut itself off from the rest of the world. Accordingly, this global event was not met with the usual enthusiasm from locals, who instead were concerned that it could increase the transmission of COVID-19 in the community. By drawing on the theories of Norbert Elias (1976, 1978) this analysis interprets the complex, evolving, dynamic environment in which the 2021 Australian Open was held. We also attempt to understand how COVID-19 intensified the ways in which Melburnians identified with and related to each other through shared experiences, and how those who displayed characteristics that did not align with their experiences and beliefs, including some of the international tennis players arriving for the Australian Open, were considered ‘outsiders,’ in constant tension with ‘insiders.’
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