July 29, (THEWILL) – The COVID-19 Olympic fever has spread into the Team Australia camp as most of its squad were sent to isolate, after a brief coronavirus scare on the eve of a track and field competition beginning at Tokyo 2020.
As a precaution, more than 50 athletes and officials were sent to their rooms after US pole vault world champion Sam Kendricks tested positive for COVID-19, ruling him out of the Games.
Although most have returned to training, three unnamed athletes, who are all fully vaccinated, remain in isolation due to what the Australian Olympic Committee has described as a “brief casual contact” with the American.
However, just like the rest of the squad who have returned to training, they have all returned negative results and will be able to compete if their results do not change.
The contact tracing revealed the Australian Kurtis Marschall trained with Kendricks before Kendricks withdrew from the Games after his positive test. He was the third American forced to withdraw from the Olympics after Beach volleyball player Taylor Crabb and U.S. women’s gymnastics alternate Kara Eaker.
The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee confirmed the forced withdrawal of Kendricks in a statement that read: “In alignment with local rules and protocols, he has been transferred to a hotel to be placed in isolation and is being supported by the USATF and USOPC staff.
“Sam is an incredible and accomplished member of Team USA and his presence will be missed. Out of respect for his privacy, we cannot provide more information at this time.”
Meanwhile, the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) statement said of their own athletes: “All three tested negative after undergoing a PCR Test this afternoon, while teammates remained in their rooms in line with AOC COVID protocols.
“The three, who are all vaccinated, self-reported once they heard news of the US athlete testing positive late this morning. All daily tests of the trio in the village had also returned negative results. All members of the Australian Team at the Tokyo Games are tested daily.”
The AOC also noted that at this stage it expected all athletes to compete as planned once the track and field competition gets under way in Tokyo on Friday.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
