Zika on the Rise

We’ve all heard on the news that the Zika virus is on the rise and may be the cause behind the cancellation of the 2016 Olympics or moving the Olympics from Rio where the outbreak original started.  Is it safer to move the Olympics or cancel them all together? Athlete’s train for years and compete in several competitions just to qualify for the Olympics, one might say it’s not fair to cancel the Olympics after they’ve come this far.  I feel like it’s a safer option to move the Olympics from Rio to another country rather than cancelling all together.

The Zika virus is defined according to the CDC as a disease caused by the bite of a mosquito already infected with the disease; while Zika isn’t a dangerous disease it can have fatal birth defects if a pregnant woman becomes infected. While some athletes still want to compete if the Olympics were to remain in Rio others feel the opposite; the Zika outbreak has caused a huge debate amongst athletes, CDC and other people who feel it should be moved, remain in Rio or just be canceled all together. If you keep it in Rio then thousands of athlete’s and fans are being put at risk of getting the Zika virus but if you move it your pushed for time and getting everything set up. The 2016 Olympics should just be moved to avoid any risk of being infected with Zika but still allowing the athletes to compete and fans to enjoy watching the games. 

Some athletes are considering skipping the Olympics all together for fear of gaining the Zika virus while competing and soon spectators may be looking for a refund on plane tickets because they do not want to travel to a Zika-infected country. A lot of money is made during the Olympics’ from people traveling to the country, Athletes and their sponsors but also all the fan gear and commercials made just to promote the 2016 Olympics. We have to look at it from the view of is it cheaper to run the risk of losing millions of dollars by keeping the 2016 Olympics in Rio or move it out of Rio and gain twice the amount because it’s not in a predominantly Zika infected country and more people will be willing to come. Finally, Put yourself in the shoes of an athlete would you want to run the risk of getting the Zika virus while competing at the 2016 Olympics’ or compete at a different location where the Zika virus is not infecting the country?

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