Fencing National Team: 3 Female Epee Fencers Test Negative for COVID-19, 1 Under Confirmation

Image source=Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] It has been confirmed that there are no additional COVID-19 cases in the national fencing team, where three confirmed cases were reported.

According to the Korea Fencing Federation on the 20th, 45 team members, including athletes and coaching staff, underwent COVID-19 testing. As of 11:30 a.m. that day, 41 people, excluding the three female ?p?e fencers, tested negative, and one person's results were still pending.

The three female ?p?e fencers who tested positive recently participated in the International Fencing Federation (FIE) Grand Prix held in Budapest, Hungary, and returned home on the 15th, when their infections were confirmed. Since then, all members of the fencing team, including male and female athletes who traveled to the European competition with the confirmed cases, have undergone testing and are currently in self-quarantine.

Among the confirmed cases, one athlete traveled to Taean with an acquaintance for a one-night, two-day trip starting on the 17th. Upon hearing that a teammate had tested positive, the athlete underwent testing in the area and was confirmed positive. This led to criticism that the athlete violated self-quarantine regulations.

The Fencing Federation issued a statement that day, explaining, "There were no issues with this athlete's COVID-19 tests before and after departure, and no symptoms were present," adding, "After the team returned, they were given a vacation and were only advised to individually be cautious about COVID-19 and manage their condition; no self-quarantine orders were given."

The federation also emphasized, "There is no regulation that asymptomatic individuals returning from overseas must undergo mandatory two-week self-quarantine," and stated, "The athlete did not violate any regulations that did not exist in the first place."

Furthermore, the federation said, "The athlete has been deeply hurt by false information and negative public opinion," and appealed to the public to "offer warm comfort and encouragement to the athletes who could not avoid COVID-19 while preparing for the Tokyo Olympics."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.