The favorite of the Tour de France 2024, Tadej Pogacar, puts on protection on June 27, 2024 in Florence (Italy). MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP
Two days before the start of the Tour de France, positive cases of Covid-19 within the peloton are bringing back bad memories of the 2020 to 2022 editions, and some teams are considering re-establishing health protocols: wearing masks in the start and finish areas, distancing measures with the public, etc. However, the riders were generally in a very relaxed mood during the team presentation on Thursday, June 27, on the heights of Florence dazzled by the setting sun, for the first Italian start in the history of the Grande Boucle.
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Earlier today, the winner of the 2019 and 2020 Tour de France, Tadej Pogacar (Team UAE-Emirates) revealed that he had contracted the coronavirus around ten days ago. “It was like a common cold and I was able to quickly resume training on the home trainer”added the Slovenian, who outperformed the Tour of Italy between May and early June.
Two other riders were not so lucky, forced to withdraw due to Covid. American Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike), winner of the last Vuelta a España, announced his withdrawal at the beginning of the week, a major loss in the mountains for his teammate Jonas Vingegaard, in the running for a new yellow jersey. Briton Tao Geoghegan Hart, new leader of Team Lidl-Trek, had to throw in the towel for the same reasons, dejectedly declaring: “We thought that Covid-19 had disappeared”. These two leading riders contracted or developed the virus during the Critérium du Dauphiné (June 2 to 9) where many riders showed worrying symptoms.
“It’s simple, we’ve all had it! »notes the former French champion Valentin Madouas (Groupama-FDJ), himself ill during the second stage, “flat and at the bottom of the bed”but who insisted on completing the test. “I felt like I had bad bronchitis, and couldn’t push myself hard on the bike.describes the Finistère. The illness passed thanks to rest. » His roommate on the Dauphiné, David Gaudu, was also affected, to the point of canceling his participation in the French championships last weekend.
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Given this resurgence in this case, which is otherwise difficult to diagnose with antigenic tests – health professionals recommend using PCR tests – some teams are considering carrying out regular tests during this Tour de France. “A test for all the runners every three or four days,” specifies Marc Mardiot, manager of Groupama-FDJ. Team Visma-Lease a Bike, the current winner of the Tour, has announced a health plan without specifying its details yet. For its part, Amaury sport organisation (ASO), which organises the Grande Boucle, does not plan to establish a new “bubble” for the teams, a health protocol in force in 2020 and 2021.
The resurgence of Covid-19 on the Tour de France does not surprise epidemiologists. “Since there are no longer any special precautions, Covid-19 seems to be spreading like wildfire”explains Professor Antoine Flahault, director of the Geneva Institute of Global Health. “This is especially true since we are observing a fairly strong wave of intensity in Europe and North America, driven by Omicron sub-variants from the FLiRT group (JN.1, KP.2, KP.3) which have the characteristic of being very transmissible, continues the recent author of Tell me ! Better health at any age (Robert Laffont). It is therefore not surprising to observe that this wave affects the riders of the Tour de France. The footballers of the Euro and the athletes of the Paris Olympics could not be spared either.
According to him, if we “certainly does not fear serious forms and hospitalizations among these young and presumably healthy athletes so much (…) Covid-19 symptoms can significantly impair sports performance”. And the running of the 2024 edition of the Tour de France could be affected.
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