Es is a voluntary trip to the Corona hotspot called European Handball Championship. When the five nominated professionals made their way to Bratislava on Tuesday morning, none of them had been forced – by whom? The German Handball Federation (DHB) pointed out that one phone call was enough to guide Johannes Bitter, Sebastian Firnhaber, Fabian Wiede, Paul Drux and Rune Dahmke to the Slovakian capital.
On Monday, the DHB initially had five, and before the game on Tuesday two more corona-related failures, a total of nine. The need is great. And the quintet packed their bags. With abdominal pain: “There is a high probability that I will become infected,” left winger Dahmke told the “Kieler Nachrichten”, “but the will is even greater to want to help.” Like Bitter, Dahmke is now the only player in his position. In terms of sport, the prospects are bleak, even if they managed to win over Poland on Tuesday evening. But it’s not just about that.
Dahmke’s assessment points to a changed risk perception: In the event of an infection, there is most likely no risk of an intensive care unit. For someone who has been vaccinated three times like the Kiel professional, an infection in Bratislava would mean a possibly symptom-free course with a five-day quarantine. This is what virologists report about infection with the omicron variant. Dahmke and the four others consciously expose themselves to the risk that this EM entails. They even spell it out. And still travel because of the great attraction of such a tournament.
One can castigate this attitude as irresponsible. You can also demand that every major sporting event be canceled by … Yes, by when? Isn’t it about learning to live with the virus, in whatever variant? In this respect, the journey into risk sends a message of normality. It reflects the current situation. Yes, the virus is spreading, yes, so far 30 players from ten countries have been affected – but we’re still playing.
The “New Normal” includes exposing yourself to the risk of infection – which is available in the cinema, restaurant, theater in Hamburg, Berlin or Munich. Knowing that the consequences for a healthy person are usually similar to a common cold. The nine corona-positive German players are symptom-free. And yet the whole thing is reminiscent of bread and circuses. Anyone who fails will be replaced. Go on. The ruble must roll, broadcast the television. So far, withdrawing from the tournament has not been an option for the DHB. The EHF wants to avoid a demolition. At its first men’s EM under pandemic conditions, the European association does not give a good picture as the organizer.
The conditions in Hungary’s halls and hotels, the fact that fans in Slovakia are not wearing masks, the long wait for PCR test results: the association doesn’t seem really prepared for the Omikron variant. The quarantine, shortened from 14 to five days, corresponds to what politicians everywhere are currently enforcing, but leads to frustration: Are the returning players really no longer contagious?
In terms of sport, this EM loses value with every positive test. The attempt to bring them to an end is nevertheless correct. With one caveat: should the tournament now be overwhelmed by positive tests, the point would be reached to cancel it. The Germans hardly knew who to field by Tuesday evening.
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