Hope Solo’s Zika comments prompt crowd to heckle soccer goalkeeper at Rio Olympics.
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In the second half, Alex Morgan scored the second USA goal. She posted as well a photo of dozens of mosquito repellant packs that she had said she had been packing for her Rio trip. Hope Solo was among the more vocal athletes, and she publicly contemplated skipping the games altogether because of Zika fears. With time running out on both, Solo opted to go to Brazil with precautions. 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. The locals find the global media outcry over the Zika virus sensationalistic, and blame Solo for helping to fuel the hype. So, still the question remains: why is hope solo being booed? Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) even called for her to be dismissed from the soccer team. “I do know that it’s spreading and they don’t really have a vaccination to treat it, so it’s definitely worrisome”.
The catalyst for the jeers was a pair of ill-conceived, half-serious tweets from two weeks ago regarding Solo’s efforts to combat Zika – the virus that’s frightened many Olympic-goers this year – while in Brazil. It was a personal decision I had to make alongside my husband [Jeffrey Stevens]. Solo said that she wants to “start a family” one day and thus had concerns about traveling to Brazil. “I came here to do one thing, and that’s to help our team win, our country, win”. I’m very grateful to them for hosting the tournament. I’m at a point in my life that I just want to be safe. The social media-savvy player has so far been having a great time, during which she has found moments of humor as well, as can be seen in the above tweet.
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The revamped Americans next play France on Saturday, again at the Mineirao.
