Nearly 11,000 athletes, including 166 Belgians, will compete in the Paris Olympics starting on Friday. However, some of Belgium's team members now have to postpone their departure following a Covid-19 infection.
After the Tour de France, the Paris Olympics are now also affected by the rising number of Covid-19 cases this summer. Some Belgian athletes have tested positive and have had to postpone their departure. The Belgian Olympic and Interfederal Committee (BOIC) did not clarify which athletes were affected.
"They will not enter until they are symptom-free and can present a negative Covid-19 test," BOIC chief physician Johan Bellemans told Belga News Agency. "Fortunately, the small Covid peak is quietly disappearing and better weather will also have a positive impact."
No infections have yet been detected among the Belgian athletes already in Paris, but the Belgian delegation is scaling up preventive measures. "Athletes and delegation members entering our bubble are required to wear face masks to avoid bringing in the virus," Bellemans said.
Isolation
Other measures have also been introduced: disinfecting hands, avoiding contact with athletes from other delegations, keeping a 1.5-metre social distance from people outside the Belgian bubble and wearing face masks on transport.
"If any of the Belgian athletes or delegation members experience cold symptoms, they are obliged to take a Covid test. We can therefore test for three viruses: Covid-19, RSV and influenza," he added.
A positive test does not automatically mean exclusion from the competition – as was still the case during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 when the pandemic was in full swing – but an infected athlete does have to go into isolation immediately. "In consultation with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), isolation rooms have been provided. Athletes who test positive are given a separate room and must train and eat separately."
Credit: Belga
"We do not automatically exclude them from competition because Covid is much less symptomatic than a few years ago. We mainly want to avoid the risk of infection," said Bellemans. "People no longer get really sick, but in top-level sport, you have to be 100% fit."
Earlier this week, the BOIC also announced that journalists who come in contact with Belgian athletes will be required to wear face masks. The athletes themselves are not obliged to wear masks, but "they are of course free to do so."
