At school, in restaurants, in sports competitions… In the midst of a global pandemic, health protocols apply everywhere, adapted to the different sectors. However, these measures taken to combat the spread of Covid-19 are sometimes inconsistent and difficult to implement. According to the daily 20 minutes, this very vague situation prompted reserve players from the Toulouse Electrogaz Club (TEC), a Toulouse rugby club, to shower in the open air. The reason ? A prefectural decree taken in Ardèche which prohibits access to changing rooms in sports clubs. Sunday, October 18, 2020, during a match between the Toulouse team and that of Saint-Jory, the reserve players therefore decided to get naked and take their shower on the field.
A photo shared by Hervé Saulignac, deputy of the Ardèche, sparked thousands of reactions. Including that of the official account of the Ministry of Sports itself, which took it with humor: “Don’t be accused of exhibitionism either and above all be careful, the weather is getting colder”, is it written.
If this photograph amuses some, it revolts others. Thus, Philippe Bapt, co-president of the Toulouse club, denounces the health protocol reserved for certain players. “For me it’s a sporting oxymoron. You can throw yourself in the mud, for eighty minutes be in contact with other players, make tackles and mauls, and not shower together for a question of lack of adapted protocol? This photo illustrates the ineptitude of the trick”, he laments.
