After the abandonment of the Norwegian Vegard Stake Laengen (UAE), teammate of Tadej Pogacar, of the Frenchman Geoffrey Bouchard (AG2R Citroën), a third rider was forced to leave the Tour de France in just two days, the Frenchman Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) , also positive for Covid-19. While there are still fifteen days of competition, this third package raises fears for the rest of the race. Is a Covid-19 epidemic looming, as the whole peloton must be tested during rest planned in Morzine this Sunday evening and Monday?
“It is important that anyone who is positive goes home”
“The gangrene spreads quickly”, worries Marc Madiot, the manager of Groupama-FDJ. He calls for the return of a health bubble to protect the peloton. According to the simplified protocol, in force this year, being positive for Covid-19 is no longer synonymous with automatic exclusion from the race. The decision whether or not to maintain a rider tested positive is taken collectively by the race doctor, the doctor from the International Cycling Union (UCI) and the team doctor, and depends on the viral load measured during the test. Last year, if two members of the same team tested positive, all had to pack their bags.
But for Andrej Hauptman, “it is important that anyone who is positive goes home”also insisted the sports director of UAE, after the positive test of the Norwegian runner. “We are obviously worried because Vegard Stake Laengen has been in contact with the riders, the whole team”, recognized Dr. Adriano Rotunno, doctor of the Emirati training, even if the runners of UAE, he assured, occupy individual rooms, wear the mask and each have their own masseur. Especially since Pogacar had already been deprived of Matteo Trentin just before the big start, already on a positive test. In all, one half a dozen riders were replaced in the days preceding the startJuly 1, in Copenhagen.
The public, a risk for the runners
Like his sports director, Tadej Pogacar also pointed the public as a risk of contamination. “Every day, on the climbs, there are lots of people cheering us on, shouting at us, he described. This is something I like very much but it also increases the chances of virus infection. I hope it will stay there.” “The Covid is not a rival but a parameter that can affect things. It can ruin the Tour”released the Slovenian.
In the minds of the runners, the specter of Switzerland, whose Tour last month was the scene of a massacre of Covid-19. Only 76 elements had finished the test, when they were 152 at the start. It was also following this cascade of abandonments that the anti-Covid protocol had been updated by the International Cycling Union (UCI).
Many departures in management
In addition to the runners, the new wave of Covid has already caused departures in the management of several teams, both in the staff and in the management of the groups. At Jumbo, “impossible to raise the level of precautions, it is at the maximum”, assures the boss Richard Plugge. Air purifiers at the hotel, room cleaning, the Dutch team has not relaxed its vigilance compared to 2020 and 2021, he says. Jumbo is indeed one of the few teams whose passengers are masked and even equipped with FFP2 equipment. Quick-Step too, but it must be said that the management of Belgian training has almost turned to the cluster: three new sports directors called to fill those infected. Lylian Lebreton, one of the sports directors of TotalEnergies, has also left the event and should return soon, as soon as he is no longer contagious.
Result, behind the scenes of the Tour de France, nerves tense. Departing from Dole, big arms from the UAE management thus played the bouncers by pushing journalists and guests behind a cordon, away from the team bus, as if the party was over. At the same time, the director of the yellow jersey, Mauro Gianetti, in deep discussion with the race doctors, complained about the crowd around the paddock: “Why are there so many people around the bus?”