Hope for normality: Tour de France under the sign of Corona

When Emanuel Buchmann's boss looks at the games in the European Football Championship, hope arises. “Football is always a pioneer. I'm happy when I see something like this, that things are mostly back to normal at the European Football Championships. I hope that it will then also be possible in cycling,” said team boss Ralph Denk from the Bora-hansgrohe cycling team to the German Press Agency before the start of the Tour de France. Mask, distance, team bubble, constant PCR tests – Denk longs for the end of the “exhausting” measures.

“There will be masks, a limit on the number of spectators, social distancing and PCR tests will have to be done, even if the progress in the vaccination campaign gives us hope that this race will be more untroubled,” explained Tour boss Christian Prudhomme.

In plain language this means: All drivers are tested twice before the start of the tour and on the first and second rest days. This also applies to the immediate environment. This entourage should move in a so-called own bubble. A second bubble includes the entourage (organization, media, etc.) and the public represents the third area. These so-called “bubbles” should not come into direct contact with each other. The previous year should serve as a model This largely worked last year. No driver tested positive; significantly, the only prominent Corona case was Prudhomme himself, who had to leave the race for a good week. If there were two positive cases, a team would have had to finish the race. This time, according to Denk, the regulation “shouldn’t be so set in stone.” There will probably also be the possibility of follow-up tests. “It would be fatal if people were sent home who are not sick with Corona,” said Denk. As the defending champion, Tadej Pogacar is of course one of the top favorites. © APA/afp / JURE MAKOVEC

Last year - the 2020 tour only started at the end of August - the second Corona wave was already underway. Many regions in France were declared risk areas before or during the race. Back then, amid the turmoil of the pandemic, Tadej Pogacar was able to surprisingly stand out and take advantage of the opportunity by becoming the Tour winner.

This time the earlier timing plays into the organizers' hands. New corona infections are also falling in France. The incidence value was recently 25,2, and in the Finistère department with the starting town of Brest it was even slightly lower. France's easing of restrictions makes audiences possible Accordingly, restrictions are also being relaxed in France. The curfew has been lifted since Sunday, as has the general requirement to wear masks outdoors. Further relaxations are expected to follow at the end of June, until then a maximum of 5000 people will be allowed to come together at outdoor sporting events. The number of spectators in the start and finish areas will be limited accordingly. “I assume that there will be more people on the track again. Then hopefully next year everything will be the way it was before,” says Buchmann.

The German cycling hopeful has come to terms with the restrictions; somehow the riders always lived in their own world during the tour anyway. Colleague Simon Geschke therefore sees the only good side effect of Corona as being “a little less stressful for the drivers”. “You have contact with fewer people, there is less going on at the finish line and at the start,” Geschke told dpa. “But of course you always liked this circus a little bit. For the most part last year there was no feeling of touring. I hope that things will be different now.”

Football

Italy

International leagues

International

Winter sports

Tennis

Other sports

Motorsport

Cycling

Watersports

Events

Favorites

Hope for normality: Tour de France under the sign of Corona

There probably won't be hundreds of thousands of cycling fans on the ramps of Mont Ventoux yet. The tour organization is relying on its Corona package of measures from last year. However, the route is likely to become more crowded again due to falling incidences and relaxations.

Suggestions

Comments (0)