Team USA swimmer Michael Andrew says he will go to Tokyo Games without being vaccinated because doesn't want to 'put anything in my body that I don't know how I'll react to'
Top Team USA swimmer Michael Andrew has admitted that he will compete in the Tokyo Olympics in two weeks' time without being vaccinated against COVID-19, saying he was concerned the side effects from the jab would interfere with his training.
The 22-year-old star athlete revealed his vaccination status on a media Zoom call on Thursday night.
Andrew is expected to compete in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter breaststroke and the 200-meter individual medley.
He told reporters that he had contracted the coronavirus months prior and that he has not been vaccinated and will not be vaccinated in the future, USA Today reported.
'My reason behind it is I, for one, it was kind of a last moment, I didn’t want to put anything in my body that I didn’t know how I would potentially react to,' he explained.
Michael Andrew, 22, who's heavily favored to swim for gold in Tokyo, said he's not vaccinated and won't be vaccinated during Olympic Games (pictured on June 13)
'As an athlete on the elite level, everything we do is very calculated. For me in the training cycle, especially leading up to trials, I didn’t want to risk any days out, because we do know that there are periods where, getting the vaccine, you have to deal with some days off.'
Common side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine include arm pain and swelling, tiredness, muscle aches, chills, fever and nausea. Those symptoms could range from mild to severe and last a few days.
Despite being unvaccinated, Andrew plans to stay with the rest of the US swimming team in the Olympic Village in Tokyo.
Andrew, who said he had COVID months ago, explained he does not want to put anything in his body that could interfere with his training schedule
Andrew won four gold medals in the 2018 World Championships. He is pictured atop the podium after winning the men's 200m individual medley during the Olympic Team trials
Despite being unvaccinated, Andrew plans to stay with the rest of the US swimming team in the Olympic Village in Tokyo
Andrew said he and the other athletes feel safe thanks to their team's strict protocols, which involve daily testing, social distancing and mask-wearing.
'So we feel very safe and protected knowing that we’re minimizing risk as much as possible, but personally I have not had the vaccine yet and don’t plan on it in the future,' he said. 'We’ll see as things go forward.'
Andrew won four gold medals in the 2018 World Championships and is heavily favored to swim for gold later this month in Tokyo.
Andrew has taken an unusual path to the Olympic team. He turned pro at age 14 and was trained by his father in a backyard pool, using methods that stressed short bursts of sprint swimming over weight training and the grueling routine of endless laps.
If he tests positive for COVID-19 during the Tokyo Games, Andrew could be disqualified from competing.
Vaccines are not mandatory at the Olympic Games.
Tokyo Olympic organizers announced Thursday that spectators would be barred from most events at the Games after a new state of emergency was announced in response to a surge in coronavirus cases
US Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland has said she expected 'the vast majority' of American athletes competing in Tokyo to be vaccinated, reported Yahoo! Sports.
Amid mounting public concerns about hosting the long-postponed Games during the pandemic, Tokyo officials earlier this week banned spectators from all venues, making it a TV-only Olympics.
There will be no public viewing areas in Tokyo and the torch relay has been pulled from the streets of the capital.
Under a state of emergency announced by the Japanese government, athletes are meant to stay in the village or venues. Most others entering Japan for the Olympics can only shuttle between their hotels and venues for the first 14 days, must sign a pledge to follow the rules, and could have their movements monitored by GPS.
About 11,000 Olympians and 4,400 Paralympians are expected to enter Japan, along with tens of thousands of officials, judges, administrators, sponsors, broadcasters and media. The IOC says more than 80% of Olympic Village residents will be vaccinated.
Nationwide, Japan has had about 810,000 cases and nearly 14,900 deaths. Only 15% of Japanese are fully vaccinated, still low compared with 47.4% in the United States and almost 50% in Britain.