AS IT IS 2016-02-14 Olympic Athletes Concerned About Zika Virus

AS IT IS 2016-02-14 Olympic Athletes Concerned About Zika Virus

With the outbreak of the Zika virus in Brazil, national Olympic committees are discussing whether to send their athletes to the Games.

Brazil reported the first case of Zika virus in May 2015. The World Health Organization (WHO) said the virus could be linked to 4,000 suspected cases of microcephaly in Brazil. Microcephaly is when babies are born with small heads. Their brains do not develop properly. It is a form of brain damage.

Last week, the WHO declared the spread of Zika a global public health emergency. It said the virus could infect as many as 4 million people across the Americas.

The news came as Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro, is getting ready to host the Olympic Games in August.

Brazil President Dilma Rousseff said her “entire government is working on fighting this emergency.” And its sports minister said the country has no plans to cancel the Games.

Alan Ashley is the sport performance director for the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC). He said to the Reuters news agency¹ that no athletes should go to Brazil “if they don’t feel comfortable going.”

The USA women’s soccer team had an Olympic qualifying² game against Costa Rica earlier this week in Texas. There, many American athletes were asked if they were concerned about Zika.

Hope Solo³ is the goalie for the U.S. national team. She has won two Olympic gold medals and helped the USA team win the Women’s World Cup last summer.

Solo said even though she has no plans to become pregnant⁴, she might not go to Brazil unless conditions related⁵ to Zika change.

“If I had to make the choice today, I wouldn’t go,” she told Sports Illustrated⁶ before the game. “I would never take the risk of having an unhealthy child.”

Solo explained that women athletes have different considerations than men.

“Competing in the Olympics should be a safe environment for every athlete, male and female⁷ alike⁸. Female athletes should not be forced to make a decision that could sacrifice the health of a child.”

And the USOC said it is taking the threat of Zika seriously.

Team USA won the most medals at the 2012 Olympics in London, finishing ahead of China, 103-88.

If some key athletes from the USA do not attend the Olympics, it could affect the standings.

In Kenya, officials said it is too early to consider not going to the Games.

Also, the Olympics will take place during the Southern Hemisphere’s winter, which should limit the mosquito population due to cooler weather.

Words in This Story

outbreak – n. a sudden start or increase of disease⁹

goalie – n. the player that defends the goal in sports like soccer and hockey

standings – n. a list that shows the positions of the players or teams that are competing against each other

defect¹⁰ – n. a problem or fault that makes someone or something not perfect

mosquito – n. a small flying insect that bites the skin of people and animals and sucks their blood

1 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

2 qualifying   

使具有资格的

参考例句：

• players who fail at the pre-qualifying stage 在预选赛中淘汰掉的选手
• A doctoral candidate is required to pass a qualifying examination. 考博士需通过一个资格考试。

3 solo   

n.独奏，独唱；adj.单独的；adv.单独地；v.放单飞，单独表演

参考例句：

• Tara is currently working on a solo album.塔拉眼下正忙着制作个人专辑。
• There's wonderfully lyrical flute solo in the middle of this symphony.在交响乐中间有一段奇妙的抒情长笛独奏。

4 pregnant   

adj.怀孕的，怀胎的

参考例句：

• She is a pregnant woman.她是一名孕妇。
• She is pregnant with her first child.她怀了第一胎。

5 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

6 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

7 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

8 alike   

adj.同样的，相像的；adv.一样地；同程度地　

参考例句：

• The twins are so alike that I can't tell which is which.这对双胞胎一模一样，我分辨不出谁是谁。
• All stories seemed dreadfully alike,no matter who told them.看来，不管谁讲，故事都是千篇一律的。

9 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

10 defect   

n.缺点，缺陷，毛病；vi.变节，叛变

参考例句：

• I don't think the importance of this defect should be exaggerated.我认为这一缺点的重要性不应加以夸大。
• The notice shall contain a description of the defect.通知应包括对瑕疵的描述。