US women’s gymnastics team staying at hotel instead of Olympic Village after positive test

The U.S. women’s Olympics gymnastics team is staying at a nearby hotel instead of the Tokyo Olympic Village after a team member tested positive for COVID-19, NBC News reported on Tuesday.

In a tweet on Monday, coach Cecile Landi confirmed that her team will be bunking at a hotel, saying “we feel like we can control the athletes and our safety better in a hotel setting!”

It was also a decision that we all made together, we know it isn’t ideal for the Olympic experience but nothing is ideal during a pandemic we feel like we can control the athletes and our safety better in a hotel setting!

— Cecile Landi (@CLcecile) July 19, 2021

The team’s decision comes after alternate Kara Eaker tested positive for the virus on Sunday, which led to her and teammate Leanne Wong being placed in quarantine, according to NBC News. 

Olympic organizers said that two participating athletes who were staying at the Olympic Village have also tested positive for COVID-19. 

Team USA has been struggling with its own coronavirus cases, with athletes including Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal, WNBA Seattle Storm forward Katie Lou Samuelson and tennis star Coco Guaff withdrawing from participation in the games due to positive tests and health and safety concerns. 

“We understand the public’s concern over the positive cases that have been reported so far, including the athlete’s village, and we will continue to handling these cases appropriately based on protocols we’ve established with the guidance of medical experts,” Tokyo 2020 Olympics President Seiko Hashimoto said Tuesday, according to NBC. “Since July 1, so far close to 30,000 people have arrived from overseas, of which 31 people tested positive for Covid, which means the infection rate is roughly 0.1 percent.”

The opening ceremony for the Games is set for Friday.