Tokyo: Hours before the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Paralympics, flag-bearer Mariyappan Thangavelu along with five other members of the Indian contingent have been put into quarantine after they came in close contact with a person who tested positive for Covid-19.
Mariyappan will be replaced by Asian Games gold medallist Tekchand as the new flag-bearer.
“On his flight to Tokyo, Mariyappan came in close contact with a Covid positive foreign passenger. Though on reaching the village he has been tested for 6 days and all his reports are negative, but the Organizing Committee has advised not to make Mariyaapan participate in the Opening Ceremony today,” Paralympic Committee of India said in a statement.
Besides Mariyappan, other athletes who are identified as ‘close contacts’ by the Japanese health authorities are — Lavanya Swastik Sirsikar, Sombir Singh, Vinod Kumar, Abhishek Sanjiv Wagh, and Mohammed Danish.
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