Novak Djokovic Devastated About the Notre-Dame Fire

Published 04/17/2019, 3:11 PM EDT

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Novak Djokovic spoke about the fire that burned parts of the renowned Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris. The World No.1 conveyed his sadness towards the citizens of Paris after the tragedy.

The 850-year-old Notre-Dame cathedral caught fire on Monday resulted with the cathedral’s spire burning down.

via Imago

Novak Djokovic expressed his views on the devastating incident after winning the first round in Monte-Carlo Masters against Philipp Kohlschreiber. Shifting away from tennis, Novak Djokovic said, “Well, my thoughts and my prayers to all the people in Paris, in France. It’s a big blow for everyone in France but also for Europe. It’s one of the most iconic sites culturally and religiously in Europe and I think it’s almost 1000 years old, so it was a big shock for everyone. I have seen it late last night.”

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Novak Djokovic is confident that the cathedral will be restored in all its splendour. He added, “I haven’t had a chance to speak to too many French people today, but it was definitely a difficult morning for all of them. But at the same time, I think what I saw is the firefighters did a great job, they saved a big part of it. So I am sure it will rise again.”

A fire broke out at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on Monday, at the same time when the Notre-Dame cathedral caught fire.

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Novak Djokovic also sent his prayers to Jerusalem, where the fire broke out in a Mosque. He said, “As I understood, I also saw that simultaneously at the same time in Jerusalem, a Mosque was burning as well. I don’t know if there is any connection or something but its really sad seeing those iconic buildings and structures to fall like that.”

“But I am sending my prayers and of course my best wishes to Parisians, all French people. Hopefully, Notre-Dame will rise again,” said Novak Djokovic.

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Written by:

Varun Khanna

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Starting off as a tennis author in 2018, Varun Khanna has gone on to contribute to EssentiallySports in various capacities. After setting up interviews with the likes of Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou, Alizé Cornet, and Noah Rubin, Varun is now part of all major ATP and WTA press conferences and has gone on to pen more than 1300 articles for EssentiallySports. He now heads the tennis and NBA division of the organization.
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