Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), one of the big favorites for the Tour de France, revealed on Thursday that he “ I covid them ” ten days ago. However, the rider was keen to reassure that he was now ” fully recovered ” two days before leaving Florence, Italy.
« I got sick ten days ago. I had Covid, it was a bit of a question mark but I recovered well and I’m fully recovered “, declared the Slovenian during a press conference in Florence.
« It wasn’t that bad. It was just a cold that passed pretty quickly, he developed. Covid is not as virulent as it used to be, especially if you have had the virus before. I have had it once, maybe twice, I don’t remember. »
The 2020 and 2021 winner fell ill during a training camp at Isola 2000. He “ stopped for a full day before getting back on the bike, first on the rollers indoors, then outdoors ».
Runners withdraw
Several riders have been ill in recent weeks, such as Frenchman David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ). And some have even been forced to withdraw because they were not sufficiently recovered, such as Briton Tao Geoghegan Hart (Lidl-Trek) or American Sepp Kuss (Visma lease a bike).
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At the start of the week, the director of the Tour, Christian Prudhomme, told AFP that masks would be “ available ” if necessary, but that there would be no health protocol, as was the case at the height of the health crisis.
