Thousands of athletes will take over the Olympic Village in Tokyo.
The Swedish women’s national football team – which kicks off the games already on Wednesday – was among the first to move in.
Last Sunday told player about breakfast behind plexiglass, plastic gloves in the dining room and clear rules during the pandemic.
There was no major concern then, despite the Olympic Village having its own first confirmed corona fall. But on Monday, when more and more athletes arrived, it sounds a little different.
– We are a safe group and stick together. But in the dining room, it is difficult to avoid others, says Rosengård attacker Olivia Schough.
– We try to keep our distance, but not everyone really thinks about it. You are not completely safe in the dining room.
The Swedish national team stars has had to tell other athletes several times, says Schough.
– Japan handles it very well and it is clear how to follow all the rules, which we do but which everyone else may not do. We say all the time, we try our best. We say “distance please”, and they understand – most of the time.
Real Madrid star Kosovar Asllani explains the situation:
– The first days we were a little more ourselves here. But yesterday and today, more people started rolling in.
Olivia told you you had to tell other athletes in the dining room?
– Yes, you have had to do that, says “Kosse”.
– You notice that we follow the routines as we have been told to do, to maximize the distance from others. But even outside the Olympic village, there are people who do not keep their distance, so then you have to say. The same with elevators and so on, where you have to make sure not to be too close to others.
What response do you get?
– Most people may be a little surprised. They may not be completely used to it. But we keep our routines and if it means that you are a little unpleasant, it must be so, says Asllani before she laughs:
– But we are nice, not unpleasant.
Of positive coronafallen inside the Olympic village, among other things, touch two South African football players, according to the site Inside the Games. The rest of South Africa’s football squad had been tested negative on Sunday, and according to the Olympic organizers will be allowed to play their premiere match this week.
– We’ll see what happens. At the moment, it feels quite unreasonable, says Olivia Schough.
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