SM
Real Madrid vs AC Milan: 8 hrs 27 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Tomas Berdych withdraws from Olympics over Zika concerns

:Headline: Tomas Berdych withdraws from Olympics over Zika concerns: ID:276869: from db_amp
Tomas Berdych joins Simona Halep and Milos Raonic in pulling out of Rio 2016 because of concerns over mosquito-borne virus Zika.

Czech Republic's Tomas Berdych is the latest athlete to announce his withdrawal from the Olympic Games due to concerns over the Zika virus.

The world number eight, who lost to Andy Murray at the semi-final stage of Wimbledon earlier this month, follows in the steps of Simona Halep and Milos Raonic in pulling out of the tournament.

It is a further blow for organisers of the competition, with the United States' John Isner and Nick Kyrgios of Australia also not involved due to separate reasons, but Berdych claims that he had to put the well-being of his family first when making the choice.

"It was a hard decision for me to take after a long and painstaking discussion with my dearest," he said on Twitter. "It is purely my personal decision but I still feel a need to give at least one of the serious reasons leading to this step to my supporters and fans.

"It is because of the Zika virus spread in the country of the Olympics. As I have founded a family recently, to limit health risks towards my nearest is the utmost priority.

"I apologise to all of you who are disappointed by my decision. I do believe that if you take a deeper account of my reasons you will understand that I have done it out of the responsibility for my family."

More than 20 golfers have already withdrawn from Rio 2016 because of concerns about the mosquito-borne virus.

amp_article__276869 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2016-07-17 10:50:08:
html db last update - 2016-07-17 10:50:08 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Tomas Berdych

Click here for more stories about Czech Republic

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .