OLYMPIC OUTBREAK
A woman walks past a board showing COVID-19 countermeasures inside a venue next to the press center ahead of the opening of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on Monday. Virus cases in the Olympic Village are on the rise, and Kara Eaker, a women’s gymnastics alternate, became the first from the U.S. to test positive on Monday.
Kara Eaker, an alternate on the United States women’s gymnastics team, tested positive for COVID-19 in an Olympic training camp in Japan.
Al Fong, the personal coach for both Eaker and fellow Olympic alternate Leanne Wong, confirmed the positive test in an email Monday to The Associated Press.
The coach said Eaker, 18, was vaccinated against the novel coronavirus two months ago.
Eaker and Wong have been placed in isolation.
USA Gymnastics did not identify Eaker or Wong but said in a statement the athlete who tested positive and another alternate would be subject to additional quarantine restrictions.
The positive test was the latest in a growing line of daily reports of athletes and others testing positive at the pandemic- delayed Olympics.
The four alternates — Eaker, Wong, Kayla DiCello and Emma Malabuyo — traveled to Japan with the six-woman U.S. delegation of world and Olympic champion Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Grace McCallum, Sunisa Lee, MyKayla Skinner and Jade Carey.
The positive test came after Eaker received what was described as a “false positive” over the weekend. Eaker took a subsequent test that was negative before testing positive again multiple times.
“Kara is s doing very well with no symptoms,” Karla Grimes, who works at GAGE Center, the gym in the Kansas City, Mo., suburbs where Eaker trains, said in an email to the AP. “Although this is a very disappointing outcome for her, she wants everyone to know she is OK.”
Biles, who is also the world champion, and the rest of the regular team have been vaccinated.
Phelps commentating
Michael Phelps will be part of NBC’s Olympics coverage as a correspondent and swimming commentator. Phelps — who has won the most medals (28) and gold medals (23) in Olympic history — will call selected swimming events with Dan Hicks and Rowdy Gaines and contribute features as a correspondent during prime- time coverage. Phelps, who swam in five Games from 2000-16, did some work for NBC during its coverage of last month’s U.S. swimming trials.
Spain adds forward
Power forward Juancho Hernangomez, who was ruled out earlier this month because of a left shoulder injury, has made Spain’s Olympic roster after all. Hernangomez, who plays in the NBA for the Minnesota Timberwolves, will still need time to recover from a dislocated left shoulder that happened in an exhibition game July 8 against France. Spain is ranked No. 2 in the world behind the U.S. by FIBA.
Samuelson tests positive
Katie Lou Samuelson is out of 3-on-3 basketball at the Olympics after contracting COVID-19 while training in Las Vegas. Samuelson, who plays for the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, flew home to get vaccinated during her European season so that she would be ready to help the U.S. qualify for the Olympics in May. She’ll be replaced on the roster by Jackie Young, who played for the U.S. in a 3-on-3 training camp in 2020 and also competed in the 2019 World Beach Games.
Appeal rejected
Nneka Ogwumike and Elizabeth Williams won’t be playing for Nigeria in the Olympics after the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected their appeal. The WNBA players had been notified last week by FIBA that their petition to play for the African nation had been denied because they played for the U.S. national program for too long.