The sport has once again been hit hard by the Covid-19, which has already started disrupting various competitions across the world, with the return of gauge for large celebrations in France announced by the government on Monday.
Facing the growth of the Omicron edition, France is returning to the gauge for major events, nearly five months after their abandonment. They set at 2,000 people for indoor events, and 5,000 people for events held outside, and the consumption of food and drink would be restricted.
These measures will come into effect on Monday for three weeks, Prime Minister Jean Casteux said.
These official announcements are a cascade of postponement of sports matches, according to a well-established scenario, in the top 14 in rugby or the elite in basketball.
On Sunday, the rugby clash between the Stade Toulouse and the Stade Française was postponed due to the Covid infection among Paris players. Four of the seven matches scheduled for “Boxing Day” – the championship day after Christmas – have been postponed.
The situation weighs on the calendar of French clubs, most of whom must already be catching up with matches in European competitions postponed last weekend.
– French handball player impressed –
Other sports have not been spared from the resurgence of the pandemic. France’s handball team has been badly hit by an explosion of infections since Sunday in preparation for Euro-2022 (January 13-30).
After taking Nicola Karabetic, Benot Koncaud and Yanis, initially called but positive for the coronavirus, the Federation (FFHB) on Sunday announced the contamination of five new players, including Olympic champion Hugo Descat.
The blues doctor, Dr. Pierre Sebastian, decided by videoconferencing on Monday, players were put in isolation upon their arrival, while awaiting the results of the second test.
Coach Guillaume Gill currently has only thirteen able-bodied players available.
The situation on the volleyball court has also worsened. Two matches have been postponed, with Montpellier due to take on Paris on 17 December and Tourcoing next Wednesday.
The situation on the basketball court has turned tense after the French championship match in Nanterre, already postponed for health reasons, for the past three days. The Boulogne-Levallois leader, “after positive cases in the workforce”, postponed its Monday night meeting against Le Portel.
Affected by cases of COVID-19, Aswell Leon-Villerbán unsuccessfully asked the National Basketball League to postpone its meeting against Limoges on Monday evening.
This return to sanctions comes at a time when basketball, but handball, volleyball, rugby and even football clubs are yet to recover, financially, from a deep crisis caused by the interruption of their competitions, the first wave. At the height of Covid-19, then behind closed doors and spectator gauges.
In football, Ligue 1 is on hiatus, but most clubs resume training on 28 or 29 December in view of the 16th Coupe de France from 2 to 4 January.
– Uncertainties about the Coupe de France –
The return of the holidays could lead to a wave of positive cases and the return of some teams. What decision will the French Football Federation take if the maximum number of matches cannot be played? In these extraordinary circumstances, can we consider postponing all 16 dates when there is some possibility in the already busy schedule of clubs?
The example of English football, whose Boxing Day was cut to three matches this weekend and again deeply troubled by Covid, might scare you the most.
In the United States, the basketball championship continues year after year, but teams are turned away from covid cases, with 27 out of 30 NBA franchises experiencing covid cases, according to data released by the North American League on Sunday. Is.
The Atlanta Hawks are deprived of eleven players and the Celtics nine, but the NBA allows teams to recruit players for short-term contracts that play in reserve championships to replace absentees.
The North American Ice Hockey League (NHL) has already postponed 67 games.
Alpine skiing was not spared with world number 1 Mikaela Shiffrin, who announced on Monday she was positive for Covid just a month before the Beijing Olympics (February 4-20), under harsh conditions and zero tolerance will be held. Covid, the organizers have already warned.
Another big event at the start of the 2022 sporting calendar, the Australian Open tennis tournament (January 17-30): Several famous players like Rafael Nadal, Andrey Rublev or Emma Radukanu had to put their preparations on hold after testing positive.
World No 1 Novak Djokovic, who has doubts about his vaccination status, has still not said whether he will travel to Australia, which requires participants to be vaccinated.
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