Minsk -
The football league continues as usual, restaurants are open, and the country's president describes the coronavirus crisis as "a psychosis". Belarus is an exception in Europe and continues to refuse to shut down the country in the fight against COVID-19.
Officially, only 88 cases of the new coronavirus have been recorded in this former Soviet republic bordering the European Union. None of them have resulted in death.
Since the start of the global health crisis, Alexandre Lukashenko, the president since 1994, has rejected implementing lockdown measures. Last week, he even denounced the existence of a "psychosis" and claimed that the "panic" generated was more dangerous than the disease itself.
- The Santiago Bernabeu will be used as an improvised warehouse to fight against COVID-19
This controversial leader, known for his verbal excesses, had previously called on the country's nine and a half million inhabitants to continue working, to continue farming, or to drive tractors - vehicles that the country mass produces.
"The tractor cures everyone," affirms the president.
In this situation, sports also do not stop. The Belarusian league, the only football championship of its level that continues to take place (the second round will be played this weekend), is a symbol of this countercurrent spirit that the country is experiencing in this unprecedented crisis.
The only measures taken regarding this league are the thermal cameras that check for possible fever in spectators at the entrance of stadiums, which are also disinfected twice a day.
The Vysshaya Liga, unknown to many, has therefore acquired a relevance and prominence never seen before.
The attendance at stadiums has decreased considerably, though, allowing for "dispersion of fans throughout the stands," according to the spokesperson for the Belarusian Football Federation, Alexandre Aleinik, as reported by AFP news agency.