BEIJING – Elana Meyers Taylor, the decorated American bobsledder who has medaled in the past three Olympics, said Tuesday she tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving on Jan. 29 and is currently at an isolation hotel in Beijing.
"I feel great, I feel like I could go out and train," Meyers Taylor told USA TODAY Sports. "That’s the most frustrating thing."
Meyers Taylor, who has received the COVID-19 vaccine and a booster shot, will need to have two negative PCR tests 24 hours apart in order to be cleared from isolation. Fortunately for her, Meyers Taylor has some time to recover and still compete as the women’s monobob event takes place Feb. 13-14 with training runs starting on Feb. 10. The two-woman bobsled event is Feb. 18-19.
Still, the short timing window could put her at a competitive disadvantage. Meyers Taylor said the U.S. Olympic Committee has been able to get a weight plate and some suspension bands to help her do some training while in isolation. But she'll likely miss the opportunity other bobsledders will have to get on the track before Friday's opening ceremony.
"It definitely sucks on this track. With coaches helping me get video, I think I’m in good shape," she said. "I was here in October. I had some good runs, so I’m confident I can put it together on this track. Now I just have to get out and go execute. Even if I only get one (training) run, I’m going to give it everything. I’m still confident I can make good things happen."
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Beijing 2022 organizers have reported 248 cases linked to the Winter Olympics, with 51 of those cases involving athletes or team officials. Everyone traveling to Beijing, including media, athletes, coaches and team personnel, must test negative twice before traveling, then again upon arrival at the airport and every day within Beijing’s so-called “closed loop” system meant to separate Olympics personnel from the general public.
Meyers Taylor, 37, won the silver medal at the 2014 and 2018 Games in the two-woman bobsled and is currently ranked No. 1 in that event after the 2021-22 World Cup races. She’s also No. 1 in the women’s monobob, which was added to the Olympic program for the first time at the Beijing Games.
Meyers Taylor took a break from competition after Pyeongchang to give birth to her son, Nico, who was born in 2020. Both her son and husband Nic, an alternate with the men's bobsled team, have tested positive for COVID-19 but are asymptomatic, she said. Nic is also in isolation, while Nico is being taken care of by her father.
"Mentally, I’m doing OK. I’m just trying to stay focused," she said. "I don’t get to be with my son, which is probably hardest part of all of it."
What makes the situation even more frustrating for Meyers Taylor is that they have not been back to the U.S. since Nov. 10 because they thought it might put them at greater risk of catching COVID-19.
Instead, they stayed in Switzerland after the final World Cup event at St. Moritz on Jan. 16 and came to Beijing directly.
"We made it through the entire pandemic so far without getting it," she said. "We thought we did everything right. It’s crazy."
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