For Kogler vaccination it is only realistic for regular Olympic holders – Magazin Sport Nachrichten –

The “Kleine Zeitung” (Saturday edition) recorded their statements on this OOC lawsuit on Friday in Graz. Basically, it is open to request, but it won’t be quick. Kogler: “That’s why I hardly see any opportunity for athletes who have yet to qualify. But for those who participate in the Olympics, it should work.” Athletes could only be vaccinated during the regeneration phases; the consequences and reactions of vaccination had to be taken into account.

Kogler emphasized that the vaccination system only depends on age, that is, from oldest to youngest. There are no exceptions. Therefore, there must also be ethical and moral discussions if there really are exceptions. If so, then Kogler only sees them in early summer: “By the end of June, at the latest in late July, everyone who needs or wants one should be vaccinated. It is predictable that in June a hundred vaccines will be preferred.”

Faced with this by the APA – Austrian Press Agency, ÖOC Secretary General Peter Mennel showed incomprehension for Kogler’s statements: “It is a pity that it is no longer understood that athletes who still have to fight for qualifying because they have barely been for one. You have had qualification opportunities, you may also suffer from international competitive disadvantages and are exposed to a high risk of infection. Maximum exposure would lead to an increased risk of infection.

Politicians have been in talks since the end of December, but now it is almost April. “If the vaccine was given in early May, it would be closer to five past twelve,” Mennel said. A second vaccine would not be necessary for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, otherwise it would be a month before the Olympic competitions in June. Games begin July 23. Almost the entire period of preparation and qualifications would not be covered in terms of vaccination.

In addition to the places still to be reached, it was also about the national elimination of places already obtained, as in triathlon. “So we just have to vaccinate both athletes, it can’t be for a few doses of vaccine,” Mennel said. It always has to be seen in relation, since the possibility of the Olympic Games only comes every four or currently five years. Other countries have recognized it, in Serbia, for example, all athletes in Tokyo have already been vaccinated.

Mennel knows that 40 of the 35 rivals of ÖOC medal candidate Lukas Weißhaidinger were vaccinated at the discus throw. He himself, as instructed by the ÖOC board, the medical advisory board and the commission, will continue to do everything possible to ensure that athletes are vaccinated as soon as possible. “It’s our turn all the time because the hat burns. It’s a shame that we no longer understand that this is something very special, that no one has a great disadvantage because of it.”

Of the around 70 active OOC players expected for the Tokyo Games, around 40 are set by quotas. In some sports there are also quasi-fixed stakes, as golfers Matthias Schwab, tennis ace Dominic Thiem or some judoka can no longer get out of quota positions until the deadline. Mennel could not answer whether Kogler would include these active players in the regular Olympics entrants. “I don’t know the definition of ‘fix’,” said the man from Vorarlberg.

Mennel himself is 65 years old and, according to the age-based concept, he would currently be vaccinated. “I like to give up my vaccination if an athlete can be vaccinated,” said the “General” of the OOC. Vulnerable groups were vaccinated with at least the first dose, and a few weeks he did not care. “But getting vaccinated a week or two early is a crucial story for an Olympian.”