The Euroleague clubs, but the 18 participating in the current season, not only the owners, have met this Monday morning telematically to address the current situation of the pandemic and the effects on the competition. In no case was it proposed to temporarily stop the Euroleague, which continues like the national leagues. If a game cannot be played (and for this a team would have to have fewer than eight healthy players registered or the local health authorities decree their isolation due to an active outbreak), it is postponed and relocated to the saturated calendar of the best possible way. The great measure of this Monday’s meeting is a change in the protocol that will allow players already recovered from COVID-19 (with negative CRP and passed medical tests that show that they are suitable for high intensity physical effort) to return to play between seven and ten days after testing positive. The final time has yet to be set and the decision will be ratified by the Euroleague board, which will do so this Tuesday, even earlier.
Until now, the protocol included that for a player to participate in a game again, he had to pass “a total of 14 days from the first test in which he tested positive or from the last day with symptoms (the last thing that happened).” That in addition to “giving negative in two tests separated by 24 hours.” Likewise, he required a troponin test (which can warn of a coronary disease), an electrocardiogram and an echocardiogram before receiving authorization to return to the slopes.
With the new protocol, which is medically adjusted to the evolution of the pandemic, with the new omicron variant and vaccinated players, who, in principle, recover before the disease, in case of having symptoms, players who tested positive for the week last they could, as long as they are recovered, we must repeat it, dress short next week. That would be the case, for example, of Llull, Taylor and Alocén (the hand guard also has a foot injury), who tested positive on Monday the 27th and would not comply with the previous protocol of 14 days to play this Thursday the 6th against him. Unics Kazan at the WiZink Center (8:45 pm) and, now, in principle, and in the absence of determining the minimum number of days, they would.
A situation that also affects Barça, which this Sunday, met a new positive, that of Sergi Martínez, the sixth player, in addition to Jasikevicius and six other members of the coaching staff. The Barça team is scheduled to visit the CSKA Moscow court on Friday 7 (6pm). If there are no more cases, he would have the necessary players according to the regulations to face that match and, according to the new protocol that is going to be approved, he could recover, in addition to Oriola, other players, without finally giving negative and meeting the requirements. Kuric tested positive on December 26 and the injured Calathes a day later, on December 27. On New Year’s Eve the contagion of Laprovittola and Brandon Davies, in addition to that of Jasikevicius, was announced. And this Sunday the 2nd that of Sergi Martínez.