One of the world’s best golfers will be absent from the Summer Olympics in Rio. Due to the threat of the Zika Virus, Australia’s Marc Leishman is withdrawing his name from consideration.
In an interview with the Golf Channel’s Will Gray, Leishman said that the health concerns of his wife, Audrey, who nearly died in 2015, is the primary reason for him pulling out.
“Last April my children and I almost lost my wife Audrey to toxic shock syndrome. Since then, Audrey has been prone to infection and is far removed from 100 percent recovery of her immune system,” Leishman said. “We have consulted with Audrey’s physician and due to her ongoing recovery and potential risks associated with the transmission of the Zika virus, it was a difficult yet easy decision not to participate.”
This is not the first time that the Zika Virus has impacted the sports world. A planned MLB series between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Miami Marlins to be played in Puerto Rico is also in serious jeopardy.
Leishman is currently the 35th-ranked golfer in the world, and with the withdrawal Adam Scott, is currently in position to make Australia’s Olympic team.
Leishman is not the first elite golfer to withdraw from the Olympics. He joins Scott as well as South Africans Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel to pull out from the event.
Leishman, however, is the first one to cite these specific concerns.