Although every U.S. swimmer has worn a mask while doing interviews with journalists at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee decided to allow unvaccinated swimmer Michael Andrew to not wear a mask -- even as the city of Tokyo is in a state of emergency due to COVID-19.
After finishing fifth in the men's 200-meter individual medley Friday morning, Andrew once again did not wear a mask in the mixed zone where press interviews are conducted, prompting a statement from the USOPC.
When asked why he chooses not to wear a mask, Andrew said, "For me it's pretty hard to breathe in after kind of sacrificing my body in the water, so I feel like my health is a little more tied to being able to breathe than protecting what's coming out of my mouth."
"I think it's great that there's procedures, but at the end of the day, all of us here have been under quarantine and in the same testing protocol, so there's a level of safety (that's) comfortable when we're racing," he continued.
When asked again why he is the only American not wearing a mask, he said, "No reason. I'll throw it on when I'm done here, but to speak, it's difficult, probably people can hear me."
Needless to say, Andrew's antics are not winning him many fans on Twitter.
Swimmer Michael Andrew proved the worst American stereotype when he refused to wear a mask (and refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19) during interviews.https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2021/07/29/olympic-swimmer-michael-andrew-refuses-wear-mask-violates-protocol/5426049001/\u00a0\u2026— Michael J. Stern (@Michael J. Stern) 1627653671
Hey @SwimmerMichael way disrespect the rules and the ghost country. You can choose to not vax.. But not wearing a mask where is required to protect yourself and others is disgusting. You should be punished. #TokyoOlympics #shameful @USASwimming @iocmedia @Tokyo2020https://twitter.com/cbrennansports/status/1420938199795335175\u00a0\u2026— \ud83d\udc99 StevenSensei \ud83d\udc99 (@\ud83d\udc99 StevenSensei \ud83d\udc99) 1627629915
Watching @SwimmerMichael not get a medal after refusing to wear a mask or get vaccinated was the best part of the Olympics for me.— charlotte (@charlotte) 1627633138
Also eff #michaelandrew he\u2019s not vaccinated and won\u2019t wear a mask in the interview zone. We have athletes dropping out almost daily because of COVID infections. I hope he loses every race. How dare he put other people\u2019s health at risk like that.— Denise Huxtable (@Denise Huxtable) 1627648586
Not only did he decline #vaccination which could not just protect him and his teammates, but now he is not following mitigation protocols as well. \n\nMichael Andrew may be an Olympian, but he doesn\u2019t seem like the most caring teammatehttps://amp.usatoday.com/amp/5426049001— Krutika Kuppalli, MD FIDSA (@Krutika Kuppalli, MD FIDSA) 1627644460
michael andrew's willful ignorance and disregard for the rules is NOT the same as someone biles' decision to pull out. he consciously refuses to wear a mask and put everyone around him in danger. simone biles pulled out so she could take care of herself. they are NOT the same.— andy (@andy) 1627617768
Unlike the GOP, I don\u2019t relish in rooting against Americans at the Olympics, but learning Michael Andrew is unvaxxed, and refused to wear a mask in the interview zone, endangering other athletes, coaches, and media, makes me able to say: his final 50m collapse was hilarious.— Scott Six (@Scott Six) 1627646925
If health and safety is your top concern, why is Michael andrew competing, and then not wearing a mask during his interview??? Shameful and dangerous behavior from an athlete, and what is the committee thinking allowing this?— Michael Goldman (@Michael Goldman) 1627652914
