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Swine flu threat for hockey world champs Russia
Published: 06 November, 2009, 11:56
Edited: 11 February, 2010, 16:09
Oleg Tverdovsky
TAGS: Sport, Vancouver-2010, Hockey
The coach of hockey world champions Russia, Vyacheslav Bykov, has confirmed reports that the national team’s defender Oleg Tverdovsky has been diagnosed with swine flu.
Talking to Mayak radio station, the coach said that there’s no certainty that any of the other players are not infected.
“I am not a doctor, so I can’t be 100 per cent sure. But we have done everything possible. Once Oleg got a fever before our flight to Finland, the team doctor Egor Kozlov immediately responded: mask, medication, and quarantine from the other players. And on arrival he was isolated in a separate room,” Vyacheslav Bykov said.
Team Russia held a training camp outside Moscow during the week before heading to Finland for the Karjala Cup in Finland, which is the second stage of the Euro Hockey Tour.
Only KHL players were invited this time, with NHL stars like Aleksandr Ovechkin and Evgeny Malkin staying in the US.
Oleg Tverdovsky, who represents Salavat Yulaev, felt sick during the last few days and didn’t train with the team, but he was diagnosed with ÃÂ/H1N1 only on Thursday.
The 33-year-old is famous for playing in the NHL. He spent 13 years in the league, defending the colors of Los Angeles Kings, Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Phoenix Coyotes, Winnipeg Jets and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
“Now the hospital has taken additional steps to ensure that he gets well. I think Tverdovsky is already recovering,” Vacheslav Bykov said.
Russia had to play their opening match at Karjala Cup without Tverdovsky. And Bykov’s men came out as winners after a tense encounter with Finland, getting the better of the hosts in a shoot-out, 4-3.
And the coach said he and his team dedicated the victory to Tverdovsky.
“You must be honest with the boys, so I told them about his sickness. There were some questions – we’re adults. And I can only wish Oleg to recover as soon as possible. We are all worried for him. I imagine how he feels now, being alone. It is not easy. So we played for him today. Let's hope that all the measures we’ve taken will be sufficient to ensure that no one else gets ill. As we see, no one is immune,” Vyacheslav Bykov said.
The Karjala Cup is an important stage of Russia’s preparations for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver in February, where hosts Canada and Bykov’s men will be the main contenders for the gold.
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Tatyana Golikova is absolutely correct. This is a press fear mongering. H1N1 has a lower mortality rate than seasonal flu. The vaccines are a joke and are more dangerous than the flu itself. As for Ukraine, their situation is interesting as there are rumors of a plague like lung disease that pratically liquefies the lungs. Could this be more fear during Presidential run up? There was a story about a Mossad agent saying they would release a contagion through the vaccines in Ukraine. He was arrested shortly after a radio address. I am curious how this hockey player contracted the flu. One thing is for sure Fear spreading is definitely an agenda.