Gazprom-RusVelo rider diagnosed with Coronavirus, Pogacar posts quarantine update

Russian rider Dmitry Strakhov has been diagnosed with coronavirus and is hospitalized in an Abu Dhabi hospital.

24-year-0ld Strakhov was one of the Gazprom-RusVelo riders that had been placed in quarantine in an Abu Dhabi hotel after the ill-fated UAE Tour last month. The race was canceled with two stages remaining due to suspected cases of coronavirus in participating teams.

The Russian ProTour team confirmed the news of Strakhov’s diagnosis on Instagram Tuesday, saying:

“Gazprom-RusVelo racer Dmitry Strakhov hospitalized in Abu Dhabi with a positive coronavirus test.

11 days have passed since the Russian team was blocked at a hotel in Abu Dhabi due to the spread of #covid19. Three racers of the Gazprom-RusVelo team were hospitalized for additional tests. Dmitry Strakhov went to the hospital on Sunday evening:

“After passing the fifth test at the hotel, they told me that I have a positive result for coronavirus and I need to go to the hospital. True, I did not see the results of the analyses. The hospital conducted additional tests, took a blood test and promised to report the results in the near future. I’m waiting. I feel normal, I followed and continue to follow all safety measures, I hope that this situation will be resolved soon.” – Strakhov.”

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Гонщик «Газпром-РусВело» Дмитрий Страхов госпитализирован в Абу-Даби с положительным тестом на коронавирус ⠀ Прошло 11 дней с момента, как российская команда была заблокирована в отеле в Абу-Даби в связи с распространением #covid19 ⠀ Три гонщика команды «Газпром-РусВело» были госпитализированы для прохождения дополнительных тестов. Дмитрий Страхов отправился в госпиталь в воскресенье вечером: ⠀ «После прохождения пятого теста в отеле мне сказали, что у меня позитивный результат на коронавирус и мне нужно отправиться в госпиталь. Результатов анализов я, правда, не видел. В госпитале провели дополнительные тесты, взяли анализ крови и обещали сообщить результаты в ближайшее время. Жду. Чувствую себя нормально, я соблюдал и продолжаю соблюдать все меры безопасности, надеюсь, что эта ситуация разрешится в скором времени» — Страхов. ⠀ #GazpromRusVelo #велоспорт #болеемзанаших #UAE #covid19 #coronavirus #мид #коронавирус #новостиспорта #cycling #ciclismo

A post shared by Gazprom – RusVelo Cycling Team (@rusvelocycling) on Mar 10, 2020 at 2:30am PDT

Gazprom-RusVelo was one of three teams held in prolonged quarantine after fears of coronavirus in the UAE Tour peloton. The Russian team was to undergo a 14-day lockdown along with staff and riders from Cofidis and Groupama-FDJ. Riders and staff from the two French teams were released ahead of schedule, Sunday.

Pogacar remains optimistic

UAE-Team Emirates also elected to keep its riders in extended quarantine after the UAE Tour. Their grand tour hope Tadej Pogacar posted an update on life in lockdown on his personal website, Monday.

“Today is the eleventh day I am “locked” in a hotel room,” he wrote.

“The hotel is looking after us well, the food is excellent… We have got training machines in our room, so we try to train at least a little. Of course, there is a TV, internet, Netflix and Playstation, so we can at least do something and pass the time….I only hope that things will go as planned and I will be able to go home at the end of next week.”

The 21-year-old Slovenian star is scheduled to start Itzulia Basque Country early next month as he builds to a first-ever Tour de France start. Whether his form has been negatively impacted by a prolonged spell in quarantine remains to be seen.