Three South Africa Olympic team members have been confirmed as the first competitors to have tested positive to COVID-19, in the athletes’ village in Tokyo, five days before the start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. This was confirmed by South Africa’s Football Association (SAFA) on Sunday.
The three South Africa Olympic team members are said to be two members from the Under-23 men’s football team, and an official who are already in isolation in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics isolation facility.
According to the statement by South Africa’s authorities, the names of the three South Africa Olympic members who have tested positive to COVID-19 were given as, Thabiso Monyane and Kamohelo Mahlatsi who are footballers and a video analyst, Mario Masha, who tested positive on Saturday, after the latest round of daily sputum (saliva) testing.
The SA team said the rest of the team members have already tested negative twice and are following closely all the recommendations of the local health authorities.
“We have three positive cases of Covid-19 in the camp here, two players and an official,” said South Africa team manager Mxolisi Sibam.
“There is daily screening which included taking temperature and saliva testing, Masha and Monyane reported high temperatures and positive saliva tests and were then taken to do the nasal test, which we all had initially taken and they unfortunately tested positive for Covid through that test. Mahlatsi is the latest player to go through the same process,” added Sibam.
A fourth Team SA member, Sevens rugby coach Neil Powell, has also produced a positive result and has been admitted to an isolation facility in Kagashimo where the Sevens squad are currently in at a pre-Games training camp.
“Every member of Team South Africa required full medical clearance as an eligibility criteria. In addition, they were encouraged to isolate for two weeks pre-departure, monitor health daily, report any symptoms, and produce two negative nasopharyngeal PCR tests taken within 96 hours of departure, as per Tokyo 2020 Olympics requirements,” explained Team SA’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Phatho Zondi.
“The timing of the positive results suggests that the PCR test in these individuals was done during the incubation period of the infection, which is how they could be negative in South Africa and then positive in Japan. They are now in isolation where they will continue to be monitored and will not be allowed to train or have any physical contact with the rest of the squad,” Dr Zondi added.