Thousands of people watching the Wednesday, August 3 game between USA and New Zealand booed and chanted 'Zika, Zika' every time the goalkeeper touched the ball.
- Aug 5, 2016
AceShowbiz - The crowd watching the soccer game between USA and New Zealand at the Rio Olympics seemed to hate Hope Solo just like she hated Zika. Thousands of people in the audience during the game on Wednesday, August 3 booed the goalkeeper, apparently due to her recent tweets about the mosquito-spread virus.
The crowd at the 60,000-capacity Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte was also heard repeatedly chanting "Zika, Zika" almost every time she touched the ball. Luckily, she wasn't bothered by the whole thing as she told the Associated Press, "I'm glad the fans had fun. And if they had fun at my expense, more power to them."
Hope Solo continues to hilariously get booed in Belo Horizonte #USAvNZL pic.twitter.com/hxiDZGS4Fj
— Andrew Jerell Jones (@sluggahjells) August 3, 2016
Earlier this year, Solo hinted that she might skip the Rio Olympics over concerns about Zika. She ended up deciding to be part of it, but posted on her social media accounts last month some photos of her wearing a mosquito net and showing off numerous bottles of insect repellent. She used the hashtag #zikaproof for those snaps.
Not sharing this!!! Get your own! #zikaproof #RoadToRio pic.twitter.com/y3d8hnuEjk
— Hope Solo (@hopesolo) July 22, 2016
If anyone in the village forgets to pack repellent, come and see me...#DeptOfDefense #zikaproof pic.twitter.com/x8RdUV6M7c
— Hope Solo (@hopesolo) July 22, 2016
Later, Solo admitted that fear about Zika had been highly exaggerated. Speaking to the Associated Press ahead of the Wednesday game, she said, "It's a little bit unfortunate because I think the American media has been really tough on people of Brazil. I feel a little bit bad because when you come here you learn for yourself. I think that we've been very hard on the local people."
