Zika Concerns Could See Kenya Withdraw From Rio 2016 Olympics

‘We are closely monitoring the situation through the CDC and have ongoing contact with the International Olympic Committee, the organizing officials in Rio, the World Health Organization and infectious disease specialists with expertise in tropical diseases, including the Zika virus, ‘ a spokesman said.

Global health authorities sensed that the mosquito-borne Zika virus was the major reason behind advancing of microcephaly, a birth defect marked by unusually small head.

Kenya has threatened to pull out of this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro if Brazil’s Zika outbreak reaches epidemic levels.

Brazil, where the Rio Games begin in August, is the hardest-hit country to date, and has warned pregnant women not to travel there. “Female professional athletes already face many different considerations and have to make choices that male professional athletes don’t”. “If any athletes on the team felt that they didn’t want to go, we would absolutely support them on that”, an NZOC spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

There are 26 countries and territories in the America’s listed as zones with active Zika virus transmission by the CDC. This includes outdoor and indoor fumigation, use of chemical and biological products in a perimeter of at least 500 meters around Olympic Games venues, lodging for athletes, and hotels, and engaging the community in environmental clean-up activities to eliminate potential mosquito breeding sites in homes, schools and workplaces.

“This idea of a virus contracted during pregnancy causing damage to the central nervous system is not a shocking finding”, Creech said.

“Secondly, the International Olympic Committee owns the Olympics and it is they who advise member NOCs on whether to send athletes to the games and, thus far, we have not received such advisories on (not) travelling to Rio”.

Will Connell, Director of Sport at the U.S. Equestrian Federation, said the USOC was leaving the decision up to individual athletes and staff members.

The statement is coming just days after the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) reportedly told its athletes via conference call “No one should go to Brazil if they don’t feel comfortable going”, – a statement the USOC has publicly denied making. The Zika virus is now known to have been transmitted through saliva, blood and urine.

The Olympic committee said no athletes have indicated they meant to withdraw, but it would “totally understand” if they did.

There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, so combating the outbreak is focused on eradicating mosquito populations and preventing mosquito bites.