Five days locked in a Abu Dhabi hotel: “They treat us like victims of the plague”

The owner of Cofidis denounces the problems of his cyclists, still in quarantine for the coronavirus after Friday's suspension.

The five days of waiting, locked in a hotel in Abu Dhabi, begin to exasperate the cyclists of Cofidis, Groupama-FDJ and Gazprom-RusVelo. “They treat us like victims of the plague,” commented Thierry Vittu, head of the Cofidis, on the measures of the authorities of the United Arab Emirates, very strict since last Friday to avoid any hypothetical infection of the coronavirus.

“This situation is not normal. They hold us against our will in a place that we did not choose and for an unknown period of time, which is the most difficult to digest,” Vittu revealed about the situation of his seven cyclists on the fourth floor of the Yas Marina hotel, where, according to his testimony, the rooms have not been cleaned since his arrival five days ago.

Last Friday, the organization of the Tour of the Emirates decided to suspend the last two stages of the race, where the best ProTour teams participated. On Saturday, controls were carried out on the 167 members of the platoon, immediately placed in quarantine. Laboratory tests declared everyone “free of COVID-19”, so they could leave the country.

(embed) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sr9eFRw0XA (/ embed)

However, on Sunday, members of Cofidis, Groupama-FDJ and Gazprom-RusVelo presented symptoms of fever and underwent a second test, so they had to continue in quarantine. In addition, the UAE Team Emirates voluntarily decided to stay locked on the first floor.

“When we meet someone from the hotel in the hallway, he runs away,” Vittu said about the problems with room service. “We have to go in front of the elevator and in a cart where we take the sheets, the soaps, the towels … Some assume it well, although for others it is more complicated,” the executive said in his statement.