Lance Stroll confirms he tested positive for COVID-19 - F1 News 22 10 20

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Racing Point’s Lance Stroll has confirmed that he did, in fact, test positive for COVID-19 on the Sunday evening at the Nurburgring.

Lance Stroll sat out the Eifel Grand Prix weekend after Friday’s cancelled practice sessions, having made the decision on Saturday morning to not participate. The Canadian hadn’t been feeling well ever since the Russian Grand Prix weekend, but had tested negative for COVID-19 in the tests prior to Portugal.

Entering the paddock on Thursday, Stroll took part in the media day at the Nurburgring before hanging around on Friday as rain prevented the drivers from going out on track. On Saturday morning, he decided against taking part and went into self-isolation in his motorhome as a precaution while Racing Point called in Nico Hulkenberg to take his seat.

Stroll took to Instagram ahead of the Portuguese Grand Prix to confirm that he was diagnosed with COVID-19 on the Sunday of that weekend.

“I just want to let everyone know that I tested positive for COVID-19 after the Eifel GP weekend. I am feeling 100% and have since tested negative.”

“To fill you in on what happened, I arrived at the Nurburgring after testing negative in the normal pre-race tests.” said Stroll.

“On Saturday morning, I started to feel unwell and woke up with an upset stomach. I followed the FIA protocol and self-isolated in my motorhome and did not re-enter the paddock. I wasn’t fit to race so I flew home early Sunday morning. As I was still feeling under the weather, I took another COVID test on Sunday evening.”

“The next day, the results came back positive, so I stayed home self-isolating for the next ten days. Luckily, my symptoms were pretty mild.”

“I was tested again on Monday this week and my results were negative. I feel in great shape and I can’t wait to be back with the team and to race in Portugal.”

Questions obviously have to be asked of Racing Point now. Had Stroll tested positive while at the circuit, Racing Point would have had to withdraw any personnel that had been in contact with him. However, with Stroll only testing positive after he’d left the venue, Racing Point were able to run that side of the garage without putting anyone into isolation – unlike Mercedes, who flew in personnel from the UK to cover gaps in their crew after positive tests. Appendix S of the FIA Sporting Code covers the Covid Code of Conduct, and states that personnel feeling unwell should not enter the paddock. With Szafnauer admitting that Stroll was ill following the Russian Grand Prix, the Canadian shouldn’t have been in contact with any team personnel at the start of the Eifel Grand Prix weekend.

With Stroll's symptoms largely being stomach-related, there is no mention of these symptoms on the FIA's list but Szafnauer's much publicised description of Stroll not being able to get off the toilet due to diarrhoea is interesting though, as it's mentioned in the World Health Organisations' list of recognised COVID symptoms, as are fatigue and fever - both of which Stroll was also suffering from.

Racing Point have since released a statement regarding the situation, in which Otmar Szafnauer has explained that a doctor's assessment of Stroll on Saturday said that it didn't point to COVID and, as a result, didn't need to be flagged with the FIA. This had the obvious benefit of meaning no other personnel needed to be isolated.

The FIA's own COVID-19 delegate will likely take a very close look at this situation, as Stroll choosing to not take part meant he was able to enter quarantine for the exact length of time required before the start of the next event. It could just all be co-incidental, and Stroll's unusual symptoms completely left Racing Point in the dark over the course of the Nurburgring weekend.

If the FIA's COVID delegate does think that Racing Point were negligent in any way regarding the handling of Stroll's illness, they have the power to refer the matter to the stewards for enforcement through the International Sporting Code.

While COVID cases throughout the F1 paddock have been minimal so far, Racing Point are in the unique position of having not just one of their drivers test positive, but both - and at separate times. Sergio Perez missed the two Silverstone races in July as he tested positive for the virus, while Stroll has had the same happen, albeit with it only becoming public after the fact. This unique situation for Racing Point suggests that their drivers are just very unlucky, or aren't being quite as cautious as drivers from the other teams.

Видео Lance Stroll confirms he tested positive for COVID-19 - F1 News 22 10 20 канала Thomas Maher