21 personnel at women's national boxing camp test positive for COVID-19

All those who have tested positive were asymptomatic and have been moved to a quarantine zone as per the SAI protocol.

Published : Apr 14, 2021 19:13 IST , NEW DELHI

One of those 21 who has tested positive is the High Performance Director Raffaele Bergamasco- Stan Rayan
One of those 21 who has tested positive is the High Performance Director Raffaele Bergamasco- Stan Rayan
lightbox-info

One of those 21 who has tested positive is the High Performance Director Raffaele Bergamasco- Stan Rayan

Indian women's boxing's High Performance Director Raffaele Bergamasco and head coach Mohammed Ali Qamar were among 21 campers who tested positive for COVID-19 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, but none of the infected pugilists is bound for Olympics.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) issued a statement to confirm the development at the camp, but did not give away names of those affected.

However, a source close to the team told PTI that the top members of the coaching staff are among those who has tested positive.

"Precautionary COVID tests were conducted at the National Coaching Camp for Elite Women Boxers at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi and 21 campers, including players and coaching staff, have tested positive. None of them however are Olympic-bound boxers," the SAI stated.

All those who have tested positive were asymptomatic and have been moved to a quarantine zone as per the SAI protocol.

"The Olympic-bound boxers as well as other campers, who tested negative, are placed in a safe zone at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi. It is SAI's utmost effort to ensure containment of the spread of virus," it said.

ALSO READ | Timeless Mary Kom's significant decade

The source revealed that the outbreak resulted in training being halted for the time being.

"Both Raffaele and Ali Qamar are positive along with some other assistant coaches. Olympic-bound are not positive but they might have come in contact with those who have tested positive during sparring, this would need more monitoring," he said.

"Everyone has been quarantined. No training for now," he added.

The four women boxers who have qualified for the Games are M C Mary Kom(51kg), Simranjit Kaur (60kg), Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) and Pooja Rani (75kg).

Wednesday's development comes after 10 from the men's contingent tested positive for the dreaded virus in March at their training base in Patiala.

In view of the growing COVID-19 cases across the country, SAI is conducting weekly precautionary tests for athletes, support staff and administration and strict quarantine norms have been set up.

A few days ago, SAI declared a three-week summer vacation at all its centres to deal with the surge in COVID-19 cases. However, it allowed training for the Olympic-bound in designated green zones.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment