During the match, she was booed when touching the ball, with fans chanting “Zika” at her in reference to the insect-borne virus that has been a major health topic in the build-up to the games. The crowd added “Zika, Zika”, after their chants of “Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole”.
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BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil (AP) – For Hope Solo, the firsts keep coming.
Solo apologized for her comments through the media when the U.S. arrived to Brazil for the Olympics, but she was still jeered during each of her goal kicks and punts.
Hope Solo’s Zika comments prompt crowd to heckle soccer goalkeeper at Rio Olympics.
As you may know the Zika virus in Brazil has been a hot topic, nearly even overshadowing the hype around the Olympics itself.
In the game, New Zealand only managed four shots because, well, have you never seen a soccer game before?
Concerns over Zika virus have been a focal point of the 2016 summer games since Brazil reported an outbreak of the mosquito-carried virus in 2015. The Brazilian fans in attendance apparently took offense to her media and let her hear about it constantly during the opening match.
Hope Solo, unlike a famous movie character from a galaxy far far away who shares her surname, isn’t Rebel scum, but Brazilian soccer enthusiasts at thought differently when Solo took the field at Mineirao on Wednesday. No man or woman goalkeeper has ever made that many and only 10 other USA players across any positions have reached the milestone.
Solo was outspoken in expressing her concerns over Zika.
“I actually spoke to three different infectious disease doctors and specialists”, she said.
Along the way she’s vocally advocated for women’s rights.
Former national team player and NBC analyst Kate Markgraf insisted the U.S would use the Solo taunts as motivation.
The fans’ jeers were a reaction to a collection of photos Solo posted on Twitter before she and her teammates departed for Rio, which make it look as if she was preparing for war. “I think in that regards we put our best foot forward and got that goal and I think that helped propel us throughout the game”. Get your own! (hashtag) zikaproof. “If I compare the Chinese team to the French team, Chinese women work harder and they complain much less”, Bini said earlier this week.
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The Olympic gold medalist upset some Brazilians ahead of the Olympic games by tweeting a photo of herself wearing a hat with a mosquito netting.
