AFTER ZADAR became a new COVID-19 hotspot following an epidemiological disaster during the Adria Tour, everyone involved has tried to wash their hands of it - athletes, organizers, and even the Coronavirus Task Force and government representatives.
They should have done so earlier, washed their hands, that is, and at the same time, they should have adhered to the social distance recommended by epidemiologists and health organizations.
What measures should we adhere to?
1) Outdoors, a distance of more than two meters should be kept from anyone who is not a member of the same household.
2) A mask should be worn indoors, where it is impossible to keep the required distance.
3) Any close physical contact, such as handshakes, hugging, and kissing with people who do not live in the same household should be avoided.
4) We should frequently disinfect our hands or wash them with soap.
These measures seem simple enough, and an average person should be able to understand why it is important to adhere to them. But that is not what happened in Zadar. An event that was supposed to be a great promotion of Croatian tourism turned into a disaster on which the media from all over the world reported, and the responsibility for it lies with everyone.
Parents' responsibility
The parents of the children who attended the tournament should have known that it was not good for them to be in close contact with other children or tennis players from around the world. Besides, parents could have easily used the Internet to find out that some of the tennis players had been in close contact with Serbian basketball player Nikola Jankovic, who tested positive for COVID-19 last Monday.
Players' responsibility
While parents could somehow be forgiven for not being informed, the same does not apply to athletes, who usually travel to tournaments around the world. They should thus be aware of all the regulations that apply to indoor and outdoor sporting events during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to prevent the spread of the infection.
The participants of the Adria Tour did the opposite of what was expected of them. They partied, hugged, and socialized with others, including children and politicians, without keeping the required distance. Moreover, they continued to have close contact with others even after they found out last week that basketball player Jankovic is coronavirus positive. As a result, several tennis players, including Djokovic, his wife Jelena, Borna Coric, Dimitrov, and his coach, and a five-year-old child from Zadar, got infected with COVID-19.
Organizers' responsibility
The responsibility of the organizers of the Adria Tour (Novak Djokovic and the Croatian Tennis Association (HTS)) is even greater than that of athletes. It was up to them to make sure that all the measures were being adhered to during the tournament.
The recommendations available on the CNIPH website include the following:
Disinfection of equipment
Fluid consumption – each player should have their own bottle and other supplies, which should be kept in a bag labeled with their name.
Staying on the premises – tournament players and the staff should not stay on the premises longer than necessary.
Seating arrangements – people in the audience should be seated 1.5 m away from each other
Daily body temperature measurement – everyone in the audience should measure their body temperature on the day of the match, and if it is higher than 37.2 °C in the morning, they should contact their physician.
Physical distance – it is recommended to keep a 1.5 m distance when entering and exiting the sports facilities where the tournament is held.
Judging by the photos and testimonies from the attendees, the organizers did not take most of these recommendations seriously. They should have also been aware of the fact that tennis players who had been in close contact with an infected basketball player a week earlier were coming to Croatia. Based on such information, they should have postponed the tournament and asked the players to self-isolate. However, their priority seemed to be not wasting the money and efforts invested in the tournament.
Coronavirus Task Force's responsibility
The Coronavirus Task Force should have been aware of the tournament and everything that could go wrong during it. The Task Force should have also sent a clear message regarding the importance of people adhering to the measures instead of defending the citizens who wanted everything to return to normal.
Minister Vili Beros posted a message on Twitter in which he defended the organizers of the tournament.
"The organizers should make sure that our measures are being adhered to at all times. However, they cannot control all those who want to hug or take pictures with someone," Beros stated.
Prime Minister's responsibility
"Croatia beat COVID-19, this government beat COVID-19, we overcame the epidemic," Plenkovic stated proudly in late May.
But the message from the man with the greatest responsibility in the country should have been that we should not relax and consider the virus gone as long as the pandemic is still active. He should have been the first to make sure that the Zadar tournament did not turn into a disaster, primarily because he also attended it. However, the Prime Minister disregarded the measures, was in close contact with the infected players, and a part of the crowded audience. At no point was he filmed or seen with a mask on his face.
Everyone was careless
Epidemiologist Kolaric says the measures that are still in force are no longer being taken seriously enough in Croatia, and the leaders of the country are partly responsible for it.
"The virus was not spreading for a while. As we opened the borders, it came back, and we disregarded the measures as if they never existed at all. We don't wear masks indoors, we shake hands and hug as if there was no infection. We had a complete lockdown, and a month later, we act as if nothing happened," our epidemiologist warned.