The last forty-eight hours on the Tour de Suisse have worried the international peloton. Forty-five runners left the race, affected by the Covid or removed from their team as a precaution. On site, the atmosphere was one of mistrust, as evidenced by the words of Philippe Mauduit, sports director of Groupama-FDJ, who told West France : “Everyone has the willies”.
It must be said that the Tour de France, the biggest race in the world and a major economic challenge for all the teams, begins only in two weeks, which is to say tomorrow or almost. Even in the Tour of Slovenia, where he is engaged these days, the double winner of the Tour Tadej Pogacar was moved by the situation : « Mikkel Bjerg is positive (in their team), there are also a lot of cases in Switzerland so yes, the situation is not terrible…”.
“I fear an increase in cases”
At the International Cycling Union, this epidemic rebound “Is unfortunately not a surprise, according to Xavier Bigard, medical director of the UCI. We had updated our protocol in January 2022, but we have not lifted our guard. There, in recent days, the situation has been complicated, because in the majority of countries, there are no longer any barrier rules. However, the virus is still circulating and in a significant way… It is becoming worrying. »
The Frenchman continues: “Clearly I fear an increase in cases, I fear the next few weeks. » He explains it because, he says, “ already last month, there was an increase in the transmission coefficient of the virus. There, I presume that we will still be above. Two new sub-variants arrived from Portugal and Spain are here. They are less dangerous, but more contagious. Above all, with these sub-variants, people infected a few weeks earlier may very well be infected again in the weeks that follow…”
One question, however: why do the positive runners continue to leave the races when most of them are not sick but asymptomatic, and are also vaccinated? A deliberately provocative question, of course, that Xavier Bigard brushes aside: “First, we are never immune to residual states of fatigue. A runner may very well be asymptomatic at the time but struggle to find his level behind. Then, second thing: even being asymptomatic, a runner can spread the virus to a person who we are not sure will not develop a serious form and will be hospitalized. So we have to be strict. »
Three tests, at least, per rider on the Tour de France
On the Tour de France, ASO, the organizer, will secure the departure and arrival areas, forcing people inside to wear masks. The public along the road will not necessarily have to wear a mask, « impossible » they say, but note that this has never been the case either on the last two editions. Go back to a strict bubble like two years ago? “No, we are not going to ask hotels to close everything, to return to individual rooms…”
Concerning the Tour, always, each team will have to test its riders themselves before the departure from Denmark. Then, ASO will test the riders on each of the two rest days. Remember that it is only at the third positive runner of the same team, over a period of seven days, that the entire formation must leave the event. “But in addition to the ASO tests, many teams set up tests themselves”, says Xavier Bigard. This is what happened in recent days in Switzerland. It should be noted, however, that the risk of contamination in the peloton, on a stage, remains very low.
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