Johan de Wit is the first Dutchman to test positive for corona at the Olympic Games in Beijing. The successful national coach of the Japanese skaters is disappointed, but assumes that his team will not be hindered by it. “The athletes know what to do.”
De Wit arrived in Beijing last Thursday. He flew with the direct KLM flight from Amsterdam, which also housed three quarters of the Dutch Olympic team. They were kept separate from the other passengers on board, but this did not apply to athletes and escorts from other countries.
De Wit’s test on Tuesday evening showed deviating values for the first time, on Wednesday he received a positive result from his PCR test and was picked up to go to a quarantine hotel. “I feel good, but lousy about the situation,” he reports by telephone.
“I’ve been around other people and feel bad about it. But I have no idea where I got it. In any case, it shows that anyone can get it. Somehow it made it into the Olympic village after all. I hope it stays with this, but expect more to follow.”
Big competitor of the Netherlands
De Wit (42) has been the coach of Japan since 2015. In recent years, that team has grown into a major competitor of the Dutch skaters. Together with world record holder Miho Takagi, he has one of the most important competitors of the Dutch team in his ranks. In 2018, De Wit was elected sports coach of the year in Japan. Countryman Dennis van der Gun also works for the Japanese team, he coaches the sprinters.
De Wit does not assume that this situation will get in the way of his team. “They are ready, they are doing very well. My athletes know exactly what to do.”
No positive cases have yet been reported within the Dutch team. Today the last group arrives in Beijing. These athletes and supervisors are kept separate from the rest for the first few days as a precaution.
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