Hope Solo not bothered by ‘Zika’ crowd chants at Olympics

Hope Solo was greeted rudely at the Rio Olympics, but she doesn’t really care. And when the most notorious USA athlete in Brazil put the ball in play, every corner of the stadium echoed with a shout of protest so loud it sounded as if it had been shot from a cannon: “Zika!”. “If they (the fans) are having fun, great”. At one point during the second half, the fans even chanted “Zika!” in unison following her kickoffs. Later, Solo admitted that fear about Zika had been highly exaggerated. The image shows her wearing a scarf around her mouth and nose, as well as a layer of net, while holding a giant-sized bottle of insect repellent.

The Brazilians, it seems, are not amused. “I mean, at least it’s loud in the stadium- I’d rather have that than hear a needle drop”. First she said she didn’t want to go to Brazil, but in May she said she’d “begrudgingly” attend – but wouldn’t leave her hotel room outside of practice and games.

“If I had to make the choice today”, Solo said of the Olympics in February, “I wouldn’t go”.

The Team USA goalie was peppered with chants of “Zika! I’m very grateful for them for hosting the tournament”. Solo slammed the International Olympic Committee as “irresponsible” for scheduling women’s soccer games in the jungle city. Organizing committee president Carlos Nuzman and CEO Sidney Levy tried to be reassuring but acknowledged it had been “very difficult” to prepare South America’s first games, which have been plagued by slow ticket sales and worries over the Zika virus, crime and security, and costs.

Just ask Maksim Chmerkovskiy how he feels about Hope Solo. All expecting mothers or women planning to become pregnant should take precautions from mosquitoes whether they are in Brazil or certain parts of Florida or not.

Oddly, she didn’t actually say she was sorry for her actions. “We came out with a lot of energy and a lot of determination”.

It is important to know that the “zika children” are born with underdeveloped heads. “I’ve played overseas”, Solo said.

Solo, 35, was criticized after tweeting photos last month of her preparations for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, an area that has been heavily impacted by the Zika virus. The U.S. team however, is used to being booed when playing in other countries, so that is not foreign to them said Ellis.