Ireland

'No evidence' rugby and Cheltenham fans brought coronavirus into country

Crowds in the stands during day four of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse
Crowds in the stands during day four of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse Crowds in the stands during day four of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse

There is no evidence that people travelling back from the Cheltenham Festival or rugby matches brought cases of coronavirus into Ireland, a health expert has said.

In March, there was criticism in the Republic at the festival organisers' decision to allow Cheltenham go ahead.

It came as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced strict measures to contain the spread of the virus with the closure of schools, colleges and the cancellation of large scale gatherings.

READ MORE: Researcher calls for Irish government to implement plans to stamp out Covid-19Opens in new window ]

The Special Covid-19 committee heard concerns about the possibility of Irish racegoers contributing to the spread of Covid-19 when they returned home.

There was also concern that rugby fans who travelled over for the cancelled Ireland v Italy Six Nations match may have also spread the virus.

Dr Cillian De Gascun, chair of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) Expert Advisory Group, said there is currently no "specific evidence" that Covid-19 was "particularly associated" with people who travelled to and from these events.

He said: "At the moment we don't have specific evidence that the virus would have been particular associated with those groups of individuals. We are an island nation with significant transport links to other European countries on a daily basis. I don't think we have evidence to support the assertion that they would have been points of introduction for the virus."

Professor Philip Nolan, who chairs the modelling advisory group on Covid-19, says if a second wave comes, there will be a more targeted approach.

It comes after more than 1,000 scientists and researchers called for the Government to suppress coronavirus rather than learning to live with the virus under a long-term mitigation strategy.

The Cheltenham Festival went ahead in March. Picture by Simon Cooper, Press Association
The Cheltenham Festival went ahead in March. Picture by Simon Cooper, Press Association The Cheltenham Festival went ahead in March. Picture by Simon Cooper, Press Association

Professor Nolan said: "The second wave will be different from the management of the first wave. The wave is likely to be different and we know that a lot more about how to manage this virus than we did the last time.

"So I imagine that there could be more targeted measures introduced to control the future outbreaks before the sort of blanket measures that we've seen in this context."

"It would be arrogant of me to predict where we will be with the virus by the end of the year. There is lots we don't know. We need to plan as if a second wave is possible and try to have all of the contingency plans in place for that scenario if the virus comes back in the future."

When asked if society will return to full normality by the end of the year, he said: "I think our behaviours will be modified for some time to come."

Dr De Gascun has said the current Covid-19 testing system is working "incredibly well", but said a long-term solution is required.

"He said: Testing and tracing is important going forward but it must be in conjunction with hand hygiene and good respiratory etiquette. Testing is not a control measure in and of itself.

"The current testing scheme was set up in the context of a pandemic and I understand the HSE is working on a more sustainable longer term solution for the coming winter season.

"What we have done so far has worked well, but I believe given the way it has been established with the number of volunteers and staff seconded from other positions - a longer term solution is required."

The coronavirus death toll in the Republic rose to 1,683 yesterday after a further four deaths were announced.

There were only nine new confirmed cases of the virus, the lowest daily tally since the early days of the outbreak in March.