The Tour de France 2020 will definitely not be like the others. To avoid the spread of the coronavirus within the peloton, the organizers have decided to exclude any team that will declare at least two positive cases for Covid-19 in a week, we learned Friday from an official source.
“From August 26, 2020 and for the duration of the Tour de France, if two or more people from the same team present strongly suspicious symptoms or are tested positive for Covid-19, the team concerned will be excluded. The runners will not be authorized to take the start and its staff members will have their accreditations withdrawn (or not assigned), ”indicates the regulations, revealed by Vélo News.
Thus, the measure concerns not only the runners but also the members of the management who are integrated into the “race bubble” which brings together between 25 and 30 people for each team, ie people in daily contact with the runners. During the Tour, all members of the “bubble race” will have to undergo a PCR test during the two scheduled rest days, the first on September 7 in Charente-Maritime, the second on September 14 in Isère.
Two PCR tests before the start of the Tour
The measure was taken in consultation with the AIGCP, the international association which brings together cycling groups, and was presented to the participating teams on the eve of the recent Critérium du Dauphiné, specified the company ASO, which organizes the Tour (Amaury Sport Organization).
Among the health measures, the riders, who have been regularly tested by their teams since the resumption of training courses, must undergo two PCR tests (through the nose) in the days preceding the start of the Tour. However, a team has the possibility during this period to replace one of its members who would have been positive for Covid-19, confirmed ASO.
During the race, a positive case from a runner or a member of the management will lead to the withdrawal of the person concerned, as well as a study of contact cases, the decision being made by the Covid unit which will manage the problems of this type during the Tour. Twenty-two teams of eight riders will participate in the 2020 Tour, the start of which will be given on August 29 from Nice.