Team USA Urges Athletes to Focus on Health Over Training

(Bloomberg) --

Team USA is urging its athletes to prioritize their own health, and the health of those around them, over their desire to train for the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

The coronavirus pandemic has created a quandary for many Olympic hopefuls. With universities and training centers closed across the country, and states entering various forms of public lockdown, those hoping to compete in Tokyo this summer are finding it harder to follow public warnings and stay in peak physical shape.

Speaking to reporters following the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee board meetings, Team USA Chief Executive Officer Sarah Hirshland pleaded for athletes and coaches to heed public warnings. Her statements came just hours before USA Swimming pressed Team USA to advocate for the games to be delayed by one year.

“Let me ask for your help in making very clear to the athlete population, all the way down to every club and pool and rink owner out there,” Hirshland said. “As Americans right now, our No. 1 priority needs to be our health and safety, and the containment of this virus. Period. Full stop. That should not conflict in any way with the decision someone is making about their training.”

Team USA’s main training centers, in Colorado and New York, are temporarily closed. Athletes who were living there have been allowed to stay in the residential portion of those facilities, though Hirshland said many have opted to leave because they can no longer train there.

Many are training on their own; others are receiving advice from coaches over video. In other countries, like Italy, some athletes have been entirely unable to train.

Swimming Letter

As a result of the global disruption, the games should be held in 2021, USA Swimming CEO Tim Hinchey said Friday in an open letter to Team USA.

“We have watched our athletes’ worlds be turned upside down and watched them struggle to find ways to continue to prepare and train -- many for the biggest competitive opportunity of their lives,” Hinchey said. “There are no perfect answers, and this will not be easy; however, it is a solution that provides a concrete path forward and allows all athletes to prepare for a safe and successful Olympic Games in 2021.”

In response, USOPC Chairwoman Susanne Lyons said the organization plans to poll all of its individual teams in advance of the International Olympic Committee executive board meeting next week.

‘Honest Feedback’

“Rest assured, we are making your concerns clearly known to them,” she said. “The USOPC will be leaders in providing accurate advice and honest feedback, and be unfailing advocates of the athletes and their safety, and the necessity of a fair platform for the games. You have our promise.”

Athletes across the world have begun to be more vocal about the struggles they’re having in preparing for the games. Dozens of qualification events have been canceled or postponed because of the virus, and other senior members of the Olympic movement are publicly calling for the games to be pushed back.

The IOC has also begun to openly discuss other options. Thomas Bach, the organization’s president, told the New York Times this week that it was considering many possibilities, but that cancellation wasn’t on the table.

Team USA, one of the largest and most powerful national organizations in the Olympic movement, is in constant contact with the IOC and remains hopeful that the games can be safely held, as scheduled, later this year.

“We are very deeply aware of the challenges that are faced in training, in qualification and in insuring clean and fair games,” Lyons said. “Our eyes are wide open to the challenges ahead, even though our hope remains strong.”

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