H1N1 fears abate at Asian Youth Games

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

H1N1 fears abate at Asian Youth Games

By Low Lin Fhoong, TODAY | Posted: 24 June 2009 0725 hrs

A man walks under banners displaying the Asian Youth Games in Singapore.

SINGAPORE: The under-14 football teams of the Philippines and Hong Kong have been withdrawn from the 1st Asian Youth Games (AYG) football competition, after it was reported earlier this week that 37 members from the squads - including players, coaches and support staff - had been quarantined due to the Influenza A(HIN1) virus.

One Filipino footballer and four members of the Hong Kong side have been infected with the flu bug, and are currently being treated at the Communicable Disease Centre (CDC) and Singapore General Hospital (SGH), respectively.

Event organisers said in a press release on Tuesday that the remaining member from Hong Kong had tested negative for H1N1 flu, and has joined his team-mates at the HomeTeamNS Pasir Ris chalets.

Twenty members from Philippines' football contingent have been quarantined at the Aloha Loyang Resort since Sunday.

The Singapore Asian Youth Games Organising Committee (Saygoc) confirmed on Tuesday that both teams have been withdrawn from the competition as they are unable to play their scheduled group matches due to the quarantine period.
No changes will be made to the format of the competition.

The football preliminaries started on Saturday, with the Games' official opening ceremony at the Singapore Indoor Stadium scheduled for Monday and the closing ceremony on July 7.

According to Saygoc, 265 athletes and officials - including the 13 football teams - have arrived in Singapore for the Games.

The organisers are keen to ensure the safety of the athletes, with measures such as twice daily temperature checks, regular screenings to detect cases, and participants are issued with a flu kit containing a health advisory, surgical mask, digital thermometer and hand sanitiser.

In a statement issued Tuesday night, Saygoc executive committee co-chairman Oon Jin Teik said: "The football preliminaries have been taking place over the past week in Singapore and I have personally gone down to view some of these matches.

"While we countdown to the opening ceremony on June 29, and as participants make their way to Singapore, we would like to personally reassure them that Saygoc and our medical experts are doing everything we can to take care of the health and well-being of everyone involved in the Asian Youth Games."

- TODAY/ yt

From ChannelNewsAsia.com; see the source article here.