German distance freestyle ace Florian Wellbrock has faced a setback in his preparation for the upcoming European Championships beginning in mid-August.
The 24-year-old confirmed to the German Swimming Federation late this week that he tested positive for COVID-19 in the weeks after the World Championships. He indeed had symptoms, including a fever, according to Berliner Morganpost.
As a result, Wellbrock was unable to attend a Mallorca training camp along with his Magdeburg teammates. Although the dual Olympic medalist has returned to training he is reportedly still not back to his full workload.
Regarding his racing schedule in Rome, Wellbrock stated this week, “We haven’t planned anything at the moment. I can’t yet say whether I’ll swim all the distances or not swim at all.”
Wellbrock is coming off of a hugely successful World Championships where he took silver in the 800m free, bronze in the 1500m free and bronze in the 10k open water race.
The German represents just one of several swimmers to test positive for COVID-19 after Worlds. Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom, the Netherlands’ Kira Toussaint and Switzerland’s Noe Ponti also tested positive shortly after the competition.
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