Australian Olympic Committee criticizes double quarantine for some athletes, says any reduction from 28 days “would be a good outcome”

The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) “remains profoundly disappointed” in the South Australian state government’s decision to impose a 28-day quarantine period on South Australian Olympians and staff returning home from Tokyo 2020.

AOC Chief executive officer Matt Carroll on Thursday said the AOC had provided compelling scientific evidence for the team members to be exempt from a double quarantine but their request and subsequent appeal have both been denied with no reasons given for the decisions.

International arrivals to Australia must undergo a mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine. But South Australia last month added an additional 14 days of home quarantine for all travelers coming from Sydney due to the spread of the delta variant of Covid-19 in the state of New South Wales.

The AOC’s argument was that the Olympians should be exempted from the home quarantine in South Australia since they are fully vaccinated, had been tested daily and were living in a biosecure “bubble”.

“While other countries are celebrating the return of their athletes, we are subjecting ours to the most cruel and uncaring treatment. They are being punished for proudly representing their country with distinction at the Olympic Games,” Carroll said.

Carroll says now that the decision has been taken, consideration should be given to reducing the period of home quarantine for the athletes.

“Our concern from the outset has been the mental and physical health of the athletes and we have respected the 14 day quarantine period.”

“But without the detailed reasons, it’s very hard to understand why these athletes are being required to undergo this additional quarantine period. A reduction in the period of quarantine would be a good outcome,” Carroll said.

The AOC was told by South Australian health officials on July 29 that the double quarantine would be imposed. At that point, the AOC attempted to re-route returning team members from Sydney to other cities including Darwin and Brisbane. But the first athletes returning from Tokyo were already inbound for Sydney.

The cap in place on the number of incoming international flights carrying returning citizens has also proved to be a hurdle.

“The AOC has sought to return as many athletes as possible to Australian states prepared to accept them however, the inherent restrictions around caps made avoiding Sydney logistically impossible,” Carroll said.

The AOC says 16 team members face the 28 days of quarantine.

Carroll says the AOC will now focus on taking further measures to care for team members and monitoring of their wellbeing.

“This has been about athlete welfare first and foremost. We have worked with governments across the country on quarantine and the athletes’ return without asking for anything special. We could not be more proud of what this Team has achieved.”

Australia’s successful response to the coronavirus began with closing both international borders and the borders between the states. International borders remain closed to all but returning citizens. Behavorial safety protocols were put in place with quarantines and lockdowns implemented to blunt the occasional infection clusters.

These measures, along with an efficient contact tracing program, have proven effective even as the vaccination rollout for the country has lagged behind that of most of the other developed countries. Australia’s vaccine rollout, which began in February, has so far resulted in about 19 percent of the population being fully vaccinated.