fbpx

10 Ways Ebola Has Affected Sports

10 Ways Ebola Has Affected Sports

8 of 11

As the devastating Ebola outbreak continues to send shock waves around the world, it has begun to infiltrate every corner of our lives. The sports world is no exception, and football in Africa, and elsewhere, has begun to feel the effects. As the months count down until the much-anticipated 2015 African Cup of Nations, questions have emerged about whether the tournament will go on at all. Here are 10 ways Ebola has affected sports.

Sources: DailyMaverick.co.za, AllAfrica.com, News.com.au, BBC.com, France24.com, TheGuardian.com, NewsTalk.ie, BBC.com, ITV.com, USAToday.com, IBTimes.com, SportsKeeda.com

NBCNews.com
NBCNews.com

Sierra Leone’s own government banned football games in the country

Sierra Leone’s government took the initiative to suspend all football matches in the country following President Ernest Bai Koroma’s declaration of a public health emergency July 30, 2014. The national team has since played its matches in Yaounde, Cameroon.

Wikimedia.org
Wikimedia.org

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) forbade matches in Guinea and Liberia

Following the Sierra Leone’s government’s lead, the CAF forbade football matches in Guinea and Liberia, the other countries with the most severe outbreaks of the Ebola virus. Liberia had already been eliminated from the tournament, but Guinea was forced to relocate its home games to Casablanca, Morocco, after Senegalese authorities refused to let its team play in Dakar.

DailyMail.co.uk
DailyMail.co.uk

Liberia has suspended all football activity within the country, even converting a major stadium into a large-scale Ebola treatment unit

In July 2014, the Liberian Football Association (LFA) decided to indefinitely suspend all football activity to protect players and fans, taking further steps to curb the spread of the deadly virus. The LFA president, Musa Hassan Bility, said in an interview with BBC, “Football being a contact sport – people are sweating – they do contact each other, and that could result in contacting the disease. It also has to do with the fans because whenever there is a game, a lot of people come together and we want to discourage gathering at this point.” The LFA also asked FIFA to call off its planned visits to Liberia in August and September. Meanwhile, the Antoinette Tubman Stadium in Monrovia has been transformed, with help from the World Health Organization and the UN, into two urgently needed large-scale Ebola treatment units.

Source: BBC.com, ITV.com

SeychellesWeekly.com
SeychellesWeekly.com

Seychelles forfeited its chance to play in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers

In July 2014, Seychelles refused to allow the Sierra Leone national team into the country for a qualifying match at the advice of its health ministry. Sierra Leone had already seen nearly 400 Ebola deaths at the time. Seychelles forfeited the match, ending its chances to compete in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, and Sierra Leone advanced to the next round.

CentPourcentFoot.net
CentPourcentFoot.net

Guinea international star Lass Bangoura was ordered to return back to Spain from international duty

The Madrid-based side, Rayo Vallecano, ordered the Guinean attacker, Lass Bangoura, back to Spain in early October 2014, for fear that Ebola might spread. Bangoura said in a statement, “My Rayo teammates welcomed me back. They have confidence in me, but what people need to understand is that when you are summoned for the national team, you have to see a doctor and get tested…I am fine, there is no problem (with my health)… I’ll be speaking on my country’s radio to say I have no problem with the national team and to say I’m sorry.” But as Bangoura is under contract with Rayo, he was forced to heed the team’s call to return.

Source: Edition.CNN.com

Standard.co.uk
Standard.co.uk

Michael Essien had to publicly denounce rumors circulating online that he had contracted the virus

Internet rumors began to circulate in early October 2014 that Ghanaian midfielder Michael Essien, who plays for Milan, had contracted Ebola. What prompted the rumors? Essien was left out of Ghana’s African Cup of Nations qualifier match against Guinea. He was quick to deny rumors on Instagram and Twitter. On October 13, he tweeted, “No truth in Internet rumours that I have contracted Ebola. I m very well & doing very gud & will be training as usual tomorrow.#falsenews.” He then went on to add, “The true victims of Ebola deserve better and our thoughts & prayers are with them and their families.#sue.”

Source: TheGuardian.com

Goal.com
Goal.com

Morocco is contemplating pulling out as host country, amid Ebola concerns

Though no final decision has been made, Morocco’s sports minister, Mohamed Ouzzine, admitted that the country is in the process of considering recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO) to see if hosting the tournament in January is still a viable option. He said, “Our concern is the health of Africa and, based on WHO reports and guidelines, we have to listen…we are expecting between 200,000 and 400,000, even 1 million spectators to converge in Morocco. I don’t think there is any state or any country that has the necessary capabilities to monitor, check and control the current Ebola situation when faced with these numbers. This is our real problem. We don’t have a problem with visitng teams; we have a problem with visitors.” The CAF and Morocco are scheduled to meet in early November to make a final decision.

Source: DailyMaverick.co.za

CameroonWeb.com
CameroonWeb.com

Sierra Leone’s John Kamara was given a three-week suspension from playing with his Greek club, PAS Lamia

After playing for the Leone Stars against Cameroon, Kamara was notified that the Greek health ministry had advised his club, PAS Lamia, to refuse to let him train with the club for three weeks. Though the matches Kamara played in were in Cameroon, where there had been no confirmed cases of Ebola, and he had not been back to his home country in more than a year, the club’s decision was final. Kamara said, “It’s something crazy. The club told me I shouldn’t be with the team for 15 to 21 days as I went to Africa to play and because of the Ebola virus. They made it clear I should stay indoors and not go to training. I’ve told the club I’m ready to undergo any medical they want me to do. As far as I’m concerned I don’t have the Ebola virus. I don’t understand it but I have to respect their decision.”

Source: TheGuardian.com

FIFA.com
FIFA.com

The Sierra Leone team faced taunting and disrespect due to the stigma of Ebola

During their matches against the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon, Sierra Leone players reported disrespect and taunting from fans who began “Ebola” chants. Opponents have refused to shake hands, and some have even refused to do the traditional jersey swapping post-game. This is ongoing. Sierra Leone’s goalkeeper, John Trye, said, “You feel humiliated, like garbage, and you want to punch someone. No one wants to have Ebola in their country. Sierra Leone is struggling. And they shove it in our face. That’s not fair.” Forward Kei Kamara added, “We’re treated like we’re walking around with the disease.” All Sierra Leone players must go through temperature screenings for Ebola twice a day, though none of them have been in the country since July.

Source: News.com.au

MoroccoWorldNews.com
MoroccoWorldNews.com

Preventative measures are being set up in Morocco to ensure health safety during the 2014 FIFA Club World Cup

The FIFA Club World Cup is set to take place in Marrakesh and Rabat in Morocco from Dec. 10-20, 2014. Though Morocco is still deciding whether to host the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations next year, it is going ahead with the FIFA tournament at the end of this year, but taking extra steps to ensure the public’s safety. The Moroccan ambassador to Argentina, Fouad Yazourh, said, “…There have been no cases of Ebola in my country. There are cases some thousands of kilometers away…in Morocco, we are taking preventative measures, due to the human ties we have with that geographic region, given that our airline is the only one that flies to those countries. And I repeat, we are taking steps so that no cases emerge in our country.” The FIFA Club World Cup will feature teams from every continent (excluding Antarctica): Spain’s Real Madrid, Argentina’s San Lorenzo, Mexico’s Cruz Azul, Australia’s Auckland City, Morocco’s Moghreb Tetouan, and a team from Asia yet to be determined.

Source: SportsKeeda.com