“Not sharing this!” she captioned the photo.
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So it’s not all that surprising that Solo is getting dissed, is it?
Health officials have claimed that Zika causes microcephaly in newborn babies, and Solo has admitted she wishes to have children with husband Jerramy Stevens, a former National Football League player.
Later, the crowd could even be heard chanting: “Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole – Zika!“.
The Zika virus, carried by mosquitoes and known to cause serious birth defects, has been one of the many overarching concerns in the run-up to the Games, with several athletes drawing out of competition entirely because of Zika. With almost every touch of the ball, the Nike-sponsored athlete was greeted with loud boos from the crowd, and by the end of the match, the Brazilian crowd continually shouted “Zika” in unison whenever Solo released the ball from her possession. Zika can be passed from a pregnant woman to her fetus. 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!“. Zika is commonly spread through certain types of mosquitos. So fine. But just because the World Health Organization deemed Brazil “safe” for the Olympics doesn’t mean women, who the virus primarily affects, can’t think twice or joke about it in a selfie.
For daring to make fun of the Zika virus scare, goalkeeper Hope Solo has been cast as the ugly American at the Summer Olympics. The France game will be in the same venue and the same kind of treatment can be expected. “Zika!” was also yelled at her during the game.
Even as she repelled shot after shot on Saturday, the chants continued, and were more noticeable than they were Wednesday.
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Carli Lloyd put the Americans ahead with a header in the ninth minute and Alex Morgan added to the lead with a low shot from inside the area less than a minute into the second half. The league has until December 31 to come to an agreement with the team, which might not be likely, as the league says the women’s claims are unfounded because their salaries are paid under a different collective bargaining agreement than the men’s. No man or woman goalkeeper has ever made that many and only 10 other US players across any positions have reached the milestone. Her performance earned praise from her teammates and coach.
