Skipping Olympics is an option, U.S. officials tell athletes

The U.S. Olympic Committee told sports federations that athletes and staff concerned for their health over the Zika virus should consider not going to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in August.

The message was delivered in a conference call involving USOC officials and leaders of U.S. sport federations in late January, according to two people who participated in the call.

Federations were told that no one should go to Brazil “if they don’t feel comfortable going. Bottom line,” said Donald Anthony, president and board chairman of USA Fencing.

The USOC’s briefing to sport federations is the latest sign that Olympics officials are taking the Zika threat to the games in Rio de Janeiro seriously, and acknowledging that at least some athletes and support staff could face a tough decision over whether to attend.

The U.S. won most medals at the last Olympics in London in 2012, so any disruption to its presence would be important for the Rio games.

Global health authorities suspect the mosquito-borne Zika virus has caused a spike in Brazil of microcephaly, a birth defect marked by an abnormally small head. As a result, the World Health Organization WHO) declared an international health emergency on February 1, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is advising pregnant women or those considering becoming pregnant to avoid travel to places with Zika outbreaks.

The USOC’s Alan Ashley, its chief of sport performance, and other USOC officials, briefed the leaders of the federations.

Briefing by federation

Mr. Ashley did not respond to e-mail or phone calls requesting comment. USOC spokesman Mark Jones confirmed by e-mail that Mr. Ashley had “briefed federation leaders on the CDC’s recommendations and we will continue to ensure that athletes and officials affiliated with Team USA receive any updates from the CDC”.

The USOC has not issued its own set of recommendations for athletes and staff beyond what the CDC and WHO have issued.

Recalling the conference call, Mr. Anthony, a former Olympian, said: “One of the things that they immediately said was, especially for women that may be pregnant or even thinking of getting pregnant, that whether you are scheduled to go to Rio or no, that you shouldn’t go.”

“And no one should go if they feel at all as though that that threat could impact them,” said Mr. Anthony, who praised the USOC’s handling of the outbreak so far.

Zika outbreaks have been reported in 33 countries, most of them in the Americas. Symptoms of infection often are mild or imperceptible. But the outbreak in Brazil that began last year has been accompanied by more than 4,000 cases of suspected microcephaly; investigators have confirmed more than 400. The link to Zika is unproven but strongly suspected.

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Sexually transmitted Zika case confirmed in Texas

A person in Texas has been infected with the Zika virus — the first case of the virus being transmitted in the U.S. during the current outbreak of Zika which has been linked to birth defects in the Americas.

“It’s very rare but this is not new, we always looked at the point that this could be transmitted sexually,” said Zachary Thompson, director of the Dallas County Health and Human Services, told WFAA-TV.

The Zika virus is usually spread through mosquito bites, but investigators have been exploring the possibility of the virus spreading through sexual contact.

“That gives you the plausibility of spread, but the science is clear to date that Zika virus is primarily transmitted to people through the bite of an infected mosquito,” Dr. Anne Schuchat of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said during a recent news conference.

The CDC says it will issue guidance in the coming days on prevention of sexual transmission of Zika virus, focusing on the male sexual partners of women who are or may be pregnant. The CDC has already recommended that pregnant women postpone trips to more than two dozen countries with Zika outbreaks, mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Venezuela. It also said other visitors should use insect repellent and take other precautions to prevent mosquito bites.

'80% of infected never experience symptoms'

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday declared a global emergency over the rapidly spreading Zika virus, saying it is an “extraordinary event” that poses a threat to the rest of the world. The declaration was made after an emergency meeting of independent experts called in response to a spike in babies born with brain defects and abnormally small heads in Brazil since the virus was first found there last year.

WHO officials say it could be six to nine months before science proves or disproves any connection between the virus and babies born with abnormally small heads.

Zika was first identified in 1947 in Uganda. It wasn’t believed to cause any serious effects until last year; about 80 per cent of infected people never experience symptoms.

The most common symptoms are fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes. The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting several days to a week. Symptoms usually start two days to a week after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

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