In a letter sent to and published by the Italian cycling website TuttoBiciWeb.it on Sunday, Cofidis sport director Roberto Damiani said that he and his French team, because of the coronavirus scare in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates said they were prepared to go on hunger strike in protest at being one of only three teams unable to leave their hotel.

The UAE Tour, in which Damiani's Cofidis team was competing, was canceled after the fifth stage on Thursday evening, leaving riders, team staff, race organization staff, and journalists trapped in hotels despite two stages remaining.

While there are now questions as to whether these staff members actually tested positive for the coronavirus, the fourth team, UAE Team Emirates, decided to remain in the hotel for the time being due to "known cases of influenza within our group and other teams." and released a statement on Sunday: "Despite being given permission to return home and the last test being negative, the team has decided to extend its stay in the UAE and return home after testing everyone's condition and making sure they are not infected.

Meanwhile, Cofidis, Groupama-FDJ, and Gazprom are believed to have not yet been allowed to return home pending further tests.

In a letter to TuttoBici, Damiani writes 'I think we have now gone beyond the limits of decency, albeit for the sake of public health and the risk of contamination. You already know what has happened in the last few days, but to date only three team members have been forced to stay in their rooms for fear of coronavirus infection.

"I would like to clarify that the Cofidis team has no problems and has been confined to this fourth floor, along with two other teams, for at least a week, without taking into account that about 500 people meet (in the race) and stay together for several hours a day," he noted.

"I must say that RCS, as the organizer (RCS Sport = co-organizer of the race), is doing everything they can to fix the problem, but it seems they have hit a brick wall as well."

Damiani added, "If the situation does not improve in the next few hours, I will launch a hunger strike to at least protect the riders and staff I am directly responsible for in this race."

On Sunday evening, Cofidis general manager Cedric Vasseur posted on social media his continued support for the riders and staff.

"My thoughts are with the members of Cofidis who have been stranded in Abu Dhabi since Thursday evening. I wish them a speedy repatriation."

Damiani's frustration with the team having to remain in the hotel was obvious and understandable, but the Italian sporting director's two Cofidis players, Nathan Haas and Attilio Viviani, stuck in the They attempted to make light of their situation by creating a video of homemade exercises they perform to maintain their fitness while stuck in the hotel.