Golf is returning to the Olympics for the first time since 1904, but a number of big names have pulled out due to Zika concerns. The news of Day’s withdrawal will hit hard and will raise further concerns that, after a 112-absence, the sport will not last past Tokyo 2020 on the Games’s roster.
So far no female golfers have declined to take part in the event.
Zika, the mosquito-borne virus, can cause crippling birth defects and has also been linked to the neurological disorder Guillain-Barré syndrome.
The World Health Organisation’s emergency committee on the disease has said there is a “very low risk” of the Zika virus spreading further internationally as a result of the Olympic Games in Brazil.
Athletes who pulled out over Zika fears
Jason Day – Golf (Australia)
World number one Jason Day became the latest top golfer to withdraw from August’s Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games because of the Zika virus just over a month before the beginning of the event.