U.S. pole vaulter Sam Kendricks, reigning world champion and Olympic bronze medalist, tested positive for coronavirus and will withdraw from the Games, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee said in a statement Thursday.
Driving the news: "In alignment with local rules and protocols, he has been transferred to a hotel to be placed in isolation and is being supported by the USATF and USOPC staff," the U.S. Olympic committee wrote.
- Kendricks’s father and coach, Scott Kendricks, wrote in a since-deleted Instagram post that Kendricks “feels fine and has no symptoms," The Washington Post reports.
- Kendricks' close contacts have been notified, according a statement from USA Track & Field.
- Australian track and field athletes isolated in their rooms as a precaution after a “brief casual contact with a U.S. track and field athlete,” but the quarantine was lifted after about two hours, when athletes received negative COVID-19 test results, per the Post.
- Kendricks' agent, Paul Doyle, declined to comment on Kendricks' vaccination status, per the Post.
The big picture: Kendricks, who is also a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve, set the American pole vault record of 6.06 meters at the U.S. outdoor championships in 2019.
- The total number of Olympic-related officials who have tested positive has reached 193, including 20 athletes, per NPR.