MEXICO CITY — Epidemiologists from Mexico’s public health agency will accompany the country’s athletes to the Olympic Games for the first time this summer.
Deputy Health Secretary Pablo Kuri Morales says the specialists will monitor athletes and try to keep them healthy in Rio de Janeiro next month.
Each athlete will receive a fanny pack containing insect repellent and condoms.
Brazil has seen an outbreak of the mosquito-transmitted Zika virus, which has been linked to devastating birth defects and a rare paralysis. Water-borne illnesses in Rio’s polluted waterways are a concern for athletes competing in those venues. Zika can also be transmitted sexually.
Mexican Olympic delegation chief Mario García de la Torre said Monday that no athletes have requested to leave the team due to health fears.
