the Covid protocol invites itself into the race

The peloton accepted these constraints, but without jumping for joy, with fatalism. Nico Vereecken/Photo News / Panoramic

If almost the entire sporting world has turned the page with great relief anti-Covid measuresTHE Tour de France will set off, he, on Saturday, from Bilbao with a strict health protocol to protect runners. Masks will therefore once again be topical for some of the followers of the caravan and all the journalists who will approach the athletes. Bad news also for the public, since the athletes will be instructed to avoid crowds and limit selfie and autograph breaks as much as possible.

All these measures respond to a request from the teams, worried after the mishap that occurred in mid-May during the Giro d’Italia at Remco Evenepoel, leader of the clification, tested positive then forced to leave the race. “If, in everyday life, there is no more worry and no one is paying attention, the threat of the virus can change a lot of things for runners. The teams asked us for protective measures, especially behind…