IOC discussing strategy to battle norovirus outbreak as more cases are reported

With the entire controversy surrounding the North Korean and South Korean teams merging and the imminent arrival of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s younger sister at the games, the Winter games have already created quite a stir. Amidst that, the 2018 Winter game have also suffered an unfortunate outbreak of a virus called ‘norovirus’ that infused bouts of vomiting and diarrhoea in the people affected. 

The virus broke out ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony in Pyeongchang and led to some 1,200 security staff being quarantined. Organisers have had to call in military personnel to replace them in order to maintain the safety of participants and tourists.

As per a Reuters report, 42 new cases were confirmed at the Winter Games, a Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) official said on Friday. After rising from an initial 32 norovirus cases on Tuesday to 54 on Wednesday, the figure had risen to 128 as of late Thursday, with most of those affected security personnel, the KCDC official added.

As of yet, no athletes have been confirmed to have contracted the highly contagious virus. A similar outbreak at last year's World Athletics Championship which was held in London forced participants from several countries to back out from events.

“The IOC is meeting right now about the Winter Olympics and countermeasures to the norovirus is one of the topic,” Su said. “We will then announce the results of the discussions and update the number of cases again,” Su Mun-gyo, a KCDC public relations official, told Reuters.

Health agencies have been carrying out hygiene inspections at accommodation areas and restaurants, as well as checking up on drinking water and tap water quality.