Swine Flu Fear Impacts US Team Member

. May 14, 2009

Fears of the Swine Flu outbreak have already caused the cancellation of a A-Grade World Cup event in Puerto Rico this June, but now have also resulted in the detaining of US fencer Susie Scanlan who was joining the US team to compete at a Grand Prix event in China.

Scanlan, who trains at Princeton University in New Jersey, was one of 75 US passengers on a flight into China who showed elevated temperatures and was detained upon entering the country until she could be medically cleared.

The US Fencing Association reports that Scanlan was evaluated after being taken to the Nanjing Hospital for Infectious Disease. She had access to her cell phone and Internet connection during this time.

In the FIE Fencing Circuit, Grand Prix events are worth double the points of a standard World Cup fencing event, so results from these events are especially valuable for athletes competing for slots on the national team or qualification to world championship events.

Kurt Aichele, Executive Director for US Fencing, stated in an email release that: "

We were able to contact her family this afternoon, and our support team at the USOC, including the U.S. Embassy, USOC medical staff, security, sport performance and media have been assisting us with notifying our Fencing family about the situation in China. Thankfully, Susie was in good hands and was treated with care. She has be released and is now with the rest of the team."

He went on to state: "For those teams and athletes getting ready to depart for China, Dr. John Reasoner at the USOC strongly recommends "an evaluation by their primary care physician or an urgent care center if there is any suspicion of a viral or bacterial illness. Get the right advice and treatment before venturing onto a plane for an extended journey. Be sure to get copies of any medical tests obtained during your clinic visit to verify negative test results. This may be helpful for screeners at your destination."

Discussion of these events on the Fencing.Net Forums:
[url=https://fencing.net/forums/thread42846.html]Puerto Rico Grand Prix Cancelled[/url]
[url=https://fencing.net/forums/thread42861.html]Susie Scanlan detained briefly[/url]