Jessica Ennis-Hill ponders change to Olympic preparation
Friday 13 May 2016 10:01, UK
Jessica Ennis-Hill is considering changing her training plans ahead of this summer's Olympic Games because of concerns about the dangerous Zika virus, which has reached epidemic proportions in Brazil.
The 30-year-old and reigning Olympic heptathlon champion is keen to spend as little time as possible in the country during the build-up to this year's Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Her coach, Toni Minichiello, says she may opt out of the Belo Horizonte training camp for Britain's athletes ahead of the Games, for fear of contracting the Zika virus.
The virus, which is carried by mosquitoes, is a congenital condition which can seriously damage the unborn babies of pregnant women, resulting in abnormally small heads.
And Minichiello told the Daily Mail: "Jessica very much wants to have more children, so we're taking it very seriously.
"I wouldn't send her into a war zone to compete. It would be remiss of me not to listen to the athlete when they say, 'This is a bit of a worry, I'm concerned about this'.
"We are looking at a number of options. We considered going somewhere in America and flying down or somewhere in Europe but that would mean a big increase in flight time. We also looked at going straight out from Sheffield.
"Finding a preparation camp is about acclimatising so we'd have to find somewhere in the right area with a track that's available. Any athlete moving camp would also have to self-fund, so there's a cost implication."
The Sheffield athlete took time out from competition to have her first child, Reggie, in 2014 and is worried about potential risks to an unborn baby.
