There has now been confirmation by South Africa that three players from the national football team for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics tested positive for COVID-19. On Sunday, the South African Football Association confirmed that three players and one video analyst had tested positive.
Only one day earlier, Olympic organizers confirmed the first case of COVID-19 among an Olympic Village resident. It has been confirmed that players Thabiso Monyane and Kamohelo Mahlatsi, as well as video analyst Mario Masha, have tested positive upon arrival in Tokyo. The team arrived in Japan ahead of a match against the host nation on Thursday.
“We have three positive cases of COVID-19 in the camp here, two players and an official,” team manager Mxolisi Sibam said in a media release from the South African Football Association.
“There is daily screening…Masha and Monyane reported high temperatures and positive saliva tests, and were then taken to do the nasal test…and they, unfortunately, tested positive for COVID-19. Mahlatsi is the latest player to go through the same process. This unfortunate situation has made us miss our first intensive training session last night,” he said.
Furthermore, the manager informed that the team is currently quarantined until it can train again. The other two teams South Africa faced in the first round of group play were Mexico and France. As per Olympic Committee records, 10 more cases were reported in addition to the SA football team, raising the total number of COVID cases associated with the Games to 55.
The highly anticipated Tokyo 2020 Olympics are now experiencing a slump ahead of the scheduled start date.