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Nadal, Ferrer not worried by Zika outbreak
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Rafael Nadal said he was not frightened by the Zika virus as he prepares in Brazil 鈥 the center of the viral outbreak 鈥 for this week鈥檚 Rio Open tournament and the city鈥檚 Olympics in less than six months.
Nadal won Olympic gold in the Beijing Olympics, but missed London with an injury.
鈥淚鈥檓 doing the things the people have told me,鈥 Nadal said on Monday. 鈥淚鈥檓 going out at night. I鈥檓 not scared. I鈥檓 not worried about this.
鈥淚f it happens, it鈥檚 bad luck.鈥
Nadal is the top-seeded man in the tournament and fellow Spaniard David Ferrer is No. 2. Both said they were confident the tournament was doing all it could to control the mosquitoes that spread the virus.
The virus is being linked to birth defects, and pregnant women have been cautioned not to travel to the country.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how serious the situation is,鈥 Nadal said. 鈥淚 see people living here totally normally. I see people on the streets, on the beach and in the restaurants. Things are going on like normal.鈥
Brazil began a campaign of spraying pesticides and distributing informational leaflets with more than 200,000 soldiers spread out across the country.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has said 鈥渨e鈥檙e at war against the mosquito鈥 and she has repeatedly guaranteed the outbreak will not derail the Olympics that open August 5.
Ferrer said he鈥檒l wear long sleeves and long trousers when he goes out socially in the morning and evening. 鈥淚鈥檒l try to take those precautions, but I鈥檓 not obsessed about it,鈥 Ferrer said.
Both Spaniards were asked to reply to comments last week by Spanish swimmer Mireia Belmonte, a two-time Olympic silver medalist in London in 2012, who said she 鈥渨ould not attend鈥 the Olympics if she thinks her health is at risk.
She echoed American women鈥檚 national soccer goalkeeper Hope Solo who said last week 鈥渋f the Olympics were today, I would not go.鈥
Neither Nadal nor Ferrer elaborated on Belmonte鈥檚 comments. 鈥淚 have talked to the local players here, and they are not giving it much importance,鈥 Ferrer said. 鈥淭here is a lot still to be known about Zika and nothing is 100 percent certain.鈥
Meanwhile, Switzerland鈥檚 Belinda Bencic became the first teenager in seven years to reach the top 10 of the WTA rankings after she climbed to ninth in the world on Monday.
A run to the final at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy ensured that Bencic, 18, became the first woman aged under 20 to enter the top 10 since Caroline Wozniacki in 2009. Maria Sharapova鈥檚 triumph at the 2006 US Open was the last time a teenaged player won a slam.
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