Mjøsund Katja, Ghaleb Mahinour, Kolsrud Lars, Carrabre Jim, Kainzinger Florian, Boehm Daniel, Bitterling Felix, Wolfarth Bernd
The International Biathlon Union (IBU), Salzburg, Austria.
Paavo Nurmi Centre and Unit for Health and Physical Activity, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
Front Sports Act Living. 2023 Aug 31;5:1217463. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2023.1217463. eCollection 2023.
The resumption of professional sports during the COVID-19 pandemic has been described in team sports but less in individual sports. The International Biathlon Union implemented a COVID-19 concept for the 2020-2021 season aimed to mitigate the risks of transmission by rules designated for the professional biathlon environment. The "bubble" model was based on regular reverse transcript polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing with rapid results and efficient result management protocol. The objective of this study was report incidence and transmission of SARS-CoV-2 among professional biathletes and staff undergoing frequent PCR testing and risk reduction measures during the international season 2020-2021. The efficiency of risk mitigation measures was also evaluated based on the incidence data. During the 4-month season, altogether 22,182 SARS-CoV-2 PCR tests were conducted on all individuals participating in international biathlon season (athletes, team staff and organizing committee). Ninety-six (0.4%) PCR tests were positive and 30% of the positive PCR tests were considered "persistent positive" following recovery from a recent COVID-19 infection. No transmission events were detected following contact with "persistent positive" cases during the season. A great majority of the positive PCR tests were recorded during the first days after arrival in the "bubble", often in the first entry test taken by the on-site laboratory. In conclusion, a "bubble model" based on frequent PCR testing and hygiene rules was efficient in keeping the infection rate low. The competition activity including international travel was safe, and most of the infections seemed to originate from outside of the "bubble".
新冠疫情期间团队运动中职业体育赛事的恢复情况已有报道，但个人运动方面的报道较少。国际冬季两项联盟为2020 - 2021赛季实施了一项新冠疫情防控方案，旨在通过为职业冬季两项赛事环境制定的规则来降低传播风险。“气泡”模式基于定期的逆转录聚合酶链反应（PCR）检测，检测结果快速且有高效的结果管理方案。本研究的目的是报告2020 - 2021国际赛季期间，接受频繁PCR检测并采取风险降低措施的职业冬季两项运动员和工作人员中，SARS-CoV-2的感染率和传播情况。还根据感染率数据评估了风险降低措施的效果。在为期4个月的赛季中，对所有参加国际冬季两项赛事的人员（运动员、团队工作人员和组委会人员）共进行了22182次SARS-CoV-2 PCR检测。9次（0.4%）PCR检测呈阳性，30%的阳性PCR检测在近期新冠感染康复后被认为是“持续阳性”。赛季期间，与“持续阳性”病例接触后未检测到传播事件。绝大多数阳性PCR检测结果是在抵达“气泡”后的头几天记录的，通常是现场实验室进行的首次入境检测。总之，基于频繁PCR检测和卫生规则的“气泡模式”有效地保持了低感染率。包括国际旅行在内的比赛活动是安全的，大多数感染似乎源自“气泡”之外。
