Sport's biggest 'COVIDiots'
From partying in Ibiza, to backyard barbeques in Uruguay - the fight to contain the spread of COVID-19 was not helped by these ‘COVIDiots,’ who underestimated the virus.
The internet’s Urban Dictionary defines a ‘COVIDiot’ as ‘Someone who ignores warnings regarding public health and safety’ or ‘a person who hoards goods, denying them from their neighbours.’
While the stars on this list weren’t guilty of stockpiling mountains of toilet paper and pasta, their blatant disregard for public safety protocol earned them the unenviable tag.
Djokovic’s Adria Tour turns into a disaster
While the rest of the sporting world went into lockdown in June, world number one Novak Djokovic organised a charity tennis tournament in the Balkans, which proved to be a PR nightmare.
Players on the Adria Tour were seemingly oblivious to the pandemic, as they shrugged social distancing and hugged, shook hands and partied in front of crowds of people.
Unsurprisingly, the virus spread quickly among the players, with Gregor Dimtrov the first to test positive before Borna Coric, Viktor Troicki and Djokovic himself contracting COVID-19.
As the organiser of the event, Djokovic’s actions were met with heavy backlash from his peers, including outspoken Aussie tennis star Nick Kyrgios.
The Serbian star issued a heartfelt apology, but that wasn’t enough to save him from a mention on this list.
Fiji’s COVID outbreak
Fiji’s Autumn Nations cup clash against Italy last month had to be cancelled when 29 members of the 32-man squad tested positive for COVID-19.
The cause of the outbreak is yet to be confirmed, but head coach Vern Cotter suspects it spread during a five-hour bus ride from Saint-Etienne to Limoges on 8 November.
“We almost certainly picked the virus up on the bus, or at a motorway stop, when we moved from Limoges.
The players was locked down in a French hotel for two weeks, but they now have the all-clear to fly to Edinburgh to face Georgia in the Autumn Nations Cup on Saturday.
Cavani, Neymar leave Ibiza with more than a tan
Copious amounts of beer are commonly consumed in Ibiza, but another form of ‘corona’ was passed around when Edinson Cavani snuck away to the Spanish party island with six PSG superstars, including Neymar and Angel Di Maria in June.
‘El Matador’ and his girlfriend both tested positive after returning to Paris and the 33 year-old kept quiet, until a recent interview where he admitted to considering retirement and life on a farm after testing positive.
"It was something we kept to ourselves and I was going to say it at some point," Cavani said.
"We spent many days in quarantine, even longer than necessary. There was no need to tell anyone.
"My family's health comes first. Of course I thought about quitting football. It is true I considered that option and the possibility of stopping playing and dedicating myself to life in the countryside."
Salah’s brother’s wedding
Liverpool superstar Mohammed Salah tested positive for COVID-19 just days after attending his brother Nasr’s wedding in Egypt.
Egypt’s FA insisted the star forward strictly observed social distancing, but when footage emerged pointing to the contrary, public backlash ensued.
It has not been confirmed that Salah contracted the virus at the wedding, but that did not stop Egypt great Mido unleashing a tirade against the ‘cowards’ at Egypt’s football administration who aiding Salah’s ‘negligence.’
Uruguay stars grilled over COVID spread
Atletico Madrid star Luis Suarez was among 17 members of the Uruguay squad to test positive for COVID-19 after returning from international duty in November.
Atleti president Enrique Cerezo was understandably livid, accusing the Uruguay federation of negligence.
"They weren't tested," he fumed. "The players don't shower. We monitor them before and after a match and training."
Outrage was fuelled by a snap of a nine players enjoying a barbecue, five of which tested positive for the virus.
Despite the backlash, Luis Suarez denied the barbecue was the origin of the virus:
“Many people are criticising us, we committed an error and we apologise for that,” he told Punto Penal. “The infection did not happen because of the barbecue, that’s very clear. We had the bad luck of one of us getting infected in Colombia.”