Concerns over the Zika virus have now led to at least one potential U.S. Olympic athlete bowing out of the 2016 Rio Olympics.
American cyclist Tejay van Garderen has withdrawn himself from consideration for one of the two spots on the U.S. roster over concerns that he might contract the Zika virus and then pass it on to his pregnant wife. van Garderen is believed to be the first American athlete to back out of the Olympics because of virus concerns.
The 27-year-old Tour de France veteran was considered a favorite to get one of those two open spots.
In the meantime, Rio officials are trying to do everything they can to ease fears about Zika. Rio organizing committee head Carlos Nuzman recently told the IOC that Zika poses “no public health risk” and would not be worth calling off the games.
Still, van Garderen is not alone in his concerns. U.S. soccer star Hope Solo has also voiced concerns about the virus and considered not attending the games as well.
USA Cycling chief executive Derek Bouchard-Hall said that they are taking all of the necessary precautions and admitted that the Rio games seem to have been beset by more problems than most Olympic events.
“I think it has been dogged more than normal and some of the things are beyond their control, and some are not,” he told the AP. “For us, it’s the velodrome (delays) and some infrastructure problems and the Zika virus, which is not Brazil’s fault per se. But they’re facing a lot of difficult challenges.”
