COVID-19 vaccination obligatory for professional athletes to compete in France

SAINTLARYSOULAN COL DU PORTET FRANCE JULY 14 Fans cheering The Peloton passing through LabartheRivire Village during the 108th Tour de France 2021 Stage 17 a 1784km stage from Muret to SaintLarySoulan Col du Portet 2215m LeTour TDF2021 on July 14 2021 in SaintLarySoulan Col du Portet France Photo by Tim de WaeleGetty Images
(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

Professional athletes who want to compete in France will have to be vaccinated against COVID-19 after a new law was passed in parliament, with sports minister Roxana Maracineanu making it clear there would be no exemptions.

Novak Djokovic is the defending champion of the French Open tennis tournament but the French government appears determined to avoid a similar scenario to the Serbian’s legal battle to enter Australia without being vaccinated. The new rule is expected to cover professional cycling races and hotels where teams stay.

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Stephen Farrand
Head of News

Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.