Sports minister denies Zika could threaten Olympics

Brazil's Sports Minister George Hilton said Thursday (Feb. 11) that the Brazilian government has no concerns of athletes giving up the Rio 2016 Olympic Games because of the Zika virus outbreak. The games begin on August 5.

“The Olympics will definitely happen and it will be a great event. [We're running] an awareness campaign that engages even the leaders of international federations, everyone's involved. [Zika virus] is not Brazil's problem, but a global concern, and we're all aware of our responsibilities. But it's not something that could mar our big event,” the minister said after attending a meeting at Palácio do Planalto about efforts to combat the virus.

In recent days, there have been rumors that Olympic committees in some countries would leave their athletes free to reconsider their plans of going to the Olympics. On Tuesday (9), however, the US committee denied making any such statement to the country's sports federations.

The minister said the Brazilian Olympic Committee will meet with the international federations next week to provide guidelines on Aedes aegypti mosquito control, but dismissed the possibility of athletes giving up coming to Brazil. According to Hilton, in the event of a Zika infection during the competition, any infected athlete will be “fully supported” by Brazilian authorities and provided care in Brazil.

Translated by Mayra Borges

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