Sports authorities' 'tardiness' in reporting athletes' virus situation annoys fans

By Lu Wenao Source:Global Times Published: 2020/3/22 20:23:40

RCD Espanyol striker Wu Lei during a training session in Barcelona, Spain Photo: Yang Ruoyu/GT

Chinese sports fans are questioning why sports authorities have been days late to report athletes being infected by coronavirus over the weekend, after three Chinese fencers and a footballer were confirmed to be infected earlier this week. 

The fencers were announced to have tested positive for the coronavirus in a statement issued by the Chinese Fencing Association on Friday, two days after the Beijing municipal government announced that there were three imported cases from Hungary on Tuesday. 

"Are our sports authorities trying to play down Chinese athletes being affected?" asked one Weibo user. "It's pretty strange that our sports bodies have to wait for days to report Chinese athletes being infected."

The sports world is not immune to the pandemic, as some professional athletes, from elite footballers to basketball stars, have reported being infected.

Sports medics have suggested professional athletes might be more easily contracted as they are regularly immunosuppressed in their upper respiratory system, thanks to the intense physical activity during training and competing at a professional level.

"It's not a problem to know Chinese athletes are affected. Their cases will only show everyone that the virus treats everyone equally," another sports fan said. 

Less than a day after the three Chinese fencers' cases were confirmed, striker Wu Lei, the only Chinese player playing in a European top-tier football league, was confirmed as infected. Wu's case has raised more concerns. 

Espanyol announced Tuesday that six members had been diagnosed with the virus after conducting tests on March 11, but the club, now sitting in La Liga's bottom place, did not name those infected. 

Wu's infection came under the spotlight after Spanish radio media Cadena COPE suggested on Friday that Wu was one of the infected players. Wu then released a video via social media on Saturday, saying the symptoms are almost gone and he is in self-quarantine at home now.

But in a weekly social media post released by Wu on Wednesday (March 18), he did not mention whether he was affected or not. The video also showed him going out but wearing a facemask. 

Wu's case also raised another question, as Wu had met with Chinese national football team coach Li Tie on March 2, who later led a 16-day training session with the 25-man national team in Dubai. The team is expected to return to Sanya in South China's Hainan Province on Sunday. 

As Espanyol did not disclose when and where Wu was infected, speculations have mounted over the whole national team after coach Li met them in Dubai on March 5. 

"The meeting between Li and Wu means Li has become a close contact of a novel coronavirus patient… then Li led the whole team's training session, so all national team players and coach staff should be quarantined," a Weibo user said. "Athletes' health should be made a priority."

Some sports fans also praised Chinese Super League club Shandong Luneng for confirming that Belgian star player Marouane Fellaini tested positive on Sunday, shortly after health authorities reported the case without mentioning his identity.

Posted in: SOCCER

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