The biggest challenge for Olympic and health officials in combating the Zika virus ahead of the Rio Games may be the popular and far-flung sport of soccer, which will be played across Brazil.
While many events will be contested in Rio de Janeiro, the soccer competition is to be contested in five additional cities. They include Manaus, the sprawling and isolated gateway to the Amazon, where canals laden with garbage and sewage were evident in places during the 2014 men’s World Cup.
Soccer also helps illustrate the conflicted and awkward position in which female athletes can be placed as they consider whether to travel to Brazil and risk possible complications with pregnancy that may be caused by the mosquito-borne virus.