Four Australian Olympic water polo players were quarantined after contracting an illness during their time in Rome, Italy.
The women’s water polo team arrived in Rio on Monday, but nearly a third of the team is in quarantine after catching a gastrointestinal illness in Rome.
On Monday, Australian officials kept 4 of the squad’s 13 members isolated from the rest of the Olympic Team.
“David Hughes [Australian chief medical officer for the team and the country’s sports commission] will keep a close eye on them, and they will stay in there for 48 hours until after they’re all cleared,” Kitty Chiller, Australia’s chef de mission, told reporters (via the Sydney Herald). “There will be no interaction between them and anyone in the village for the next 48 hours.”
The women’s water polo team, known as the Stingers, are set to open with a match on August 9th against Russia. The Australian team won gold at the Sydney Olympics and a bronze at the Beijing Games.
The first competition for the Australian delegation will commence on Wednesday, with the women’s soccer team’s game against Canada.
This incident is just another in the Australian Olympic Team’s series of unfortunate events. These events include when one of the country’s Paralympians was the target of attempted robbery, when athletes found that the toilets in the Village could not pass a stress test, and when laptops and clothing were stolen from the Australian team’s quarters at the Olympic Village.
