Tennis Has A Conundrum When It Comes To COVID-19 Testing - UBITENNIS

Tennis Has A Conundrum When It Comes To COVID-19 Testing

Two countries, two testing procedures and two very different outcomes.

By Adam Addicott
7 Min Read

In the French capital of Paris six players were excluded from Roland Garros qualifying after either testing positive for COVID-19 or being in close contact with somebody who has. At the same time in neighbouring Germany Benoit Paire returned to action on Wednesday despite testing positive – twice.

The two different scenarios are an abrupt reminder of the ongoing uncertainty that has been caused by the devastating coronavirus outbreak which has infected an estimated 31.6 million people, according to John Hopkins University. World No.25 Paire finds himself in an unfortunate situation of illustrating how difficult the pandemic is for the world of tennis. In August he was banned from playing at the US Open and placed in isolation under protocol after he failed a COVID-19 test. After that ordeal he was able to travel to both Paris and Rome without any issues. Then Germany caused a whole new headache.

“I tested positive for (COVID-19) in Hamburg. The only negative I got was yesterday,” Paire revealed after retiring during his first round match on Wednesday.
“The rules seem different here so the ATP has to explain what they are. Here in Germany you can test positive and you can play. So thank you to the tournament and doctors for allowing me to play but there are some rules I obviously don’t understand much. 
“We don’t know if the positive test in the USA was false. We only know that I was negative after the US Open, in France, in Rome and then I was positive in Hamburg,” he later added.

Paire’s revelation caused both a stir and confusion. In the aftermath of his comments, the chiefs of the Hamburg Open issued a statement explaining why the Frenchman was allowed to play. Their argument is that it is normal for a person to still have fragments of the virus in their body after contracting it for weeks after. Dr. Volker Carrero said Paire didn’t show symptoms (that he knew of at the time) and wasn’t contagious.   

“Paire was tested positive for COVID-19 on August 28th at the US Open and consequently was required to quarantine in New York for 10 days. When he arrived at Hamburg a re-test was positive. On Tuesday he tested negative,” the statement reads.
“According to Dr. Volker Carrero, it is not uncommon that three weeks after a positive result, fragments of the virus can still be found inside the body. Paire has not shown any symptoms of the disease and has not been contagious at any time. Local health authorities in Hamburg made the decision on Saturday that Paire is allowed to play.”

But there are still unanswered questions. For instance how did medical officials ascertain that Paire didn’t have the virus and his positive test in New York might have been a false alarm? Furthermore, he cited tiredness as the reason for his withdrawal from the tournament which is a sign of the virus. Was this something he had prior and were the medical officials aware of this?

The unlucky ones

Damir Dzumhur

The story will likely enrage one group of players on the Tour who were kicked out of the French Open. Unlike Hamburg, those who test positive or have a close contact who has tested positive are removed from competition no matter what. Although it has proved to be a controversial decision.

Damir Dzumhur has told blix.ba that he is in contact with lawyers after he was removed from Roland Garros due to his coach, Petar Popovic, testing positive. Although Popovic had the virus during the summer and asked officials for a second to test to rule out a false result. Something that the French Tennis Federation (FFT) refused. Just over a day later Popovic underwent another test in Serbia where he was negative.

We were just asking for the right to another test that would prove that it is a false positive test, which happens in more than 15% of cases … Unfortunately, they did not accept that, they told us that we could stay in the room in isolation for seven days, and we decided to go home because I knew I was not infected – I did two tests in Serbia and I am negative, he told Sport Klub.
“Now we will fight for the rights of all other players, not to expel from Roland Garros players who are a false positive.”

Dzumhur isn’t the only person to be in this unfortunate situation. Poland’s Katarzyna Kawa and Spain’s Bernabé Zapata were also excluded after testing positive to only return to their home countries and test negative. To empathise the significance of their removal, those who play in qualifying and win all three of their matches are guaranteed at least 60,000 euros in prize money. Kawa says she is unable to claim compensation after signing an agreement.

So who is at fault? Unfortunately it isn’t as simple as to blame one individual or a certain process. Tennis is a global sport but the downside for players is that they are playing in different countries with each of them having their own rules on COVID-19. If Paire was in Paris this week instead of Hamburg he would have never been allowed to play.

There is also the argument that perhaps the sport should have a standardised testing system applied throughout. Although in reality that is unrealistic not only due to each country having their own rules, but the fact seven governing bodies operate within the sport.

Ironically the current mood among players is best summarised by Paire himself, who uploaded a photo of him on Instagram with the caption ‘Quand est ce que ça va s’arrêter?’ French for ‘when will this end?’

Unfortunately, given a rise in cases once again, COVID-19 will be around for a while and therefore so will be the complexed testing processes.

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