Due to unsuitable weather conditions, the games of the European Beach Volleyball Championship on Friday, September 18, are planned to be held in other fields, hoping to return to the usual Jurmala beach volleyball stadium on Saturday and Sunday, confirmed one of the tournament organizers Latvian Volleyball Federation (LVF) board member Andris Blaka. Later, the organizers confirmed that the tournament will continue on Friday at the beach center “Rukki” without the presence of spectators.
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All Thursday games of the European Championship have been canceled due to strong winds. The central square is covered with water and the organizers plan to hold Friday’s games elsewhere, announcing changes in the competition calendar at the time of the decision.
“The plan is to move the race to another location on Friday,” Blaka confirmed. “In addition, the matches will take place on Friday without spectators. In turn, on Saturday and Sunday we hope to compete in Jūrmala again.”
He also pointed out that the possible losses will be judged only after the sea water has left the stadium.
Fic ️Official notice of the continuation of the tournament‼ ️
Games 18.09. will take place in the center of Ruukki Beach, but for security reasons these games are for FREE VIEWERS!
????Game schedules updated and live https://t.co/4qkjq8c03e#EuroBeachVolley#JurmalaBeachvolley pic.twitter.com/TPUHsZ6fyu— Jurmala.Beachvolley (@JurmalaVolley) September 17, 2020
On Thursday, six Latvian men’s and one women’s duo were scheduled to go to the square.
In the morning, it was planned to conclude the battle group tournament in Jūrmala for men’s duets, but then to play the first two playoffs for volleyball players.
People with Covid-19 are still in Latvia
Four beach volleyball players of the European Championship who have been diagnosed with Covid-19 after arriving in Latvia are isolated, but the best solution for transporting them home is still being discussed, said Kaspars Timermanis, the tournament director and board member of the Latvian Volleyball Federation (LVF).
Four athletes from Austria, Ukraine and Russia tested positive for Covid-19.
All athletes had to arrive in Latvia with a negative test, not older than 72 hours. Immediately upon arrival at Riga Airport, all athletes were retested. In the case of a positive test, the athletes were immediately isolated and the test was repeated immediately. The re-test is performed according to the instructions of the medical delegate of the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) Manfred Holzgreef to make sure that no error is possible. Re-testing of all participants also takes place in accordance with the regulations of the Cabinet of Ministers of Latvia.
“All infected people are re-tested, but the Austrian representative also handed over blood tests to determine if there are antibodies in the blood,” said Timermanis, director of the tournament at the Covid-19 European Championship.
He added that all those accredited for the competition – athletes, coaches, doctors, physiotherapists – had been tested, and all but four patients had negative Covid-19 tests.
“All patients are isolated and not in a hotel with other athletes. Both Ukrainian volleyball players and an Austrian are in a cottage-type hostel, where they can also go out on the balcony to breathe fresh air, but they do not go out of the accommodation and are provided with food.” the process was explained by the tournament director. “The Russian athlete, on the other hand, is elsewhere and has already been taken care of by the responsible Russian officials. The other two federations are still thinking about how to deal with this issue.”
Regarding the process of expulsion of possible patients from the country, Timermanis said that the right solution is still being sought in this issue. He mentioned that the Austrian beach volleyball companion has already gone home after two negative Covid-19 tests.
From Friday to Sunday, all participants of the competition will be tested again for Covid-19 in order to make sure that the competition is safe and to comply with the rules developed by the international volleyball institution and the Latvian state in the fight against Covid-19.
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