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NASCAR To Use COVID Sniffing Dogs To Detect Virus

NASCAR fans react to the news that the organization will be using COVID sniffing dogs to try to help manage the virus during the races at Daytona this weekend

LONG POND, PA - JULY 28: A general view of the NASCAR logo on the wall during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series - Gander Outdoors 400 on July 28, 2019 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

When sports organizations have been brainstorming how to control the COVID-19 virus, an idea to use dogs to try to sniff for COVID began to arise. Now, NASCAR is putting that to the test.

During this weekend’s races at Daytona, NASCAR plans to use trained dogs to sniff for the virus when drivers or crew members enter the garage. If a dog is to detect the virus, the individual will undergo further testing.

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NASCAR fans had a mixed reaction to the news of dogs being used to detect COVID.

The idea NASCAR has with the COVID sniffing dogs started last month, when the organization did a trial run at its Atlanta races.

“We think that these dogs and this capability is going to allow us to rapidly confirm that all of those people entering the essential footprint on Sunday — that’s race teams, that’s NASCAR officials, that’s the vendors that work inside the garage — all those folks are COVID-free or not,” said Tom Bryant, NASCAR managing director of racing operations. “The ability to do that has kind of been the math problem that we have continuously tried to solve since March of last year.”

Even if fans may be confused, dogs could prove to be an asset when detecting and managing COVID before it turns into a larger outbreak.


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