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Canadian athletes to have vaccine access before Tokyo Games

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By Frank Pingue

TORONTO (Reuters) – All Canadian athletes competing at this year’s Tokyo Olympics will have access to COVID-19 vaccines before they head to the global event, the Canadian Olympic Committee‘s (COC) chief medical officer said on Friday.

COVID-19 vaccinations are not mandatory to compete in the July 23-Aug. 8 Games but they are recommended. COC Chief Medical Officer Mike Wilkinson said the pace of Canada‘s vaccine rollout will allow the Tokyo-bound delegation to be vaccinated on time without jumping any queues.

“If we look at the process and what the planned timelines are of the vaccines, we are being assured by the government and by the vaccine task-force that… by the time July rolls around anyone in Canada who wants to get the vaccine will be able to get it,” Dr Wilkinson told Reuters in a telephone interview.

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“And so I am confident the Canadian team, i.e., that doesn’t only include athletes but coaches, sports staff, mission team volunteers, will be able to be vaccinated by the time they leave for Tokyo.”

Canada is sending a smaller delegation of about 750-850 people to the Olympics, down from the usual size of around 1,000 individuals, due to the pandemic. A number of roles that traditionally would have been performed on the ground in Tokyo will instead be done remotely.

Wilkinson said if anyone brings up concerns with taking the vaccine he will discuss with them the possible side effects, timing with regards to their training as well as the benefits.

“I have not had anybody in the delegation come to me and say that they don’t want to take the vaccine,” said Wilkinson.

“There are obviously people that may have medical contraindications due to some of the medications they are on or allergies. We are encouraging everyone to get the vaccine if they can but it’s not mandatory.”

Wilkinson also said the COC is ready to play a role when it comes to getting the vaccine distributed to its delegation.

“Our discussions revolve around how do we actually assist and utilise the infrastructure that we have within the Canadian sports system to deliver the vaccine,” he said.

“This way teams and athletes can get it done conveniently at their training sites within their bubbles so that we are not putting extra strain on the public system and that would enable the athletes to remain in their secured controlled environments where they are training.”

 

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Christian Radnedge)

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Vasilevskiy stops 23 as surging Lightning beat Bruins – Sportsnet.ca

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Shane Pinto has a goal, three assists as the Senators roll over the Sabres – Sportsnet.ca

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Here’s what we know about the allegations against Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara

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LOS ANGELES –

Only a week has passed since the Los Angeles Dodgers abruptly fired Ippei Mizuhara, the interpreter and constant companion of their new $700 million slugger, Shohei Ohtani.

But the biggest story of baseball’s spring is still murky — and shocking — as the regular season begins in earnest Thursday.

The scandal encompasses gambling, alleged theft, extensive deceit and the breakup of an enduring partnership between the majors’ biggest star and his right-hand man. Investigations are underway by the IRS and Major League Baseball, and Ohtani publicly laid out a version of events Monday that placed the responsibility entirely on Mizuhara.

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Here are the basics as Ohtani and the Dodgers prepare for their home opener against St. Louis on Thursday:

Why was Ippei Mizuhara fired by the Dodgers?

Ohtani claims his close friend repeatedly took money from his accounts to fund his illegal sports gambling habit. Ohtani also says he was completely unaware of the “massive theft,” as his lawyers termed it, until Mizuhara confessed to him and the Dodgers last week in South Korea, where the team opened its regular season against the San Diego Padres.

Mizuhara has given more than one version of his path to this trouble, which was catalyzed by the IRS’ investigation of Mathew Bowyer, an alleged illegal bookmaker. Mizuhara has consistently said he has a gambling addiction, and he abused his close friendship with the Dodgers superstar to feed it.

Did Shohei Ohtani ever bet on sports?

That’s the biggest question to be answered in Major League Baseball’s investigation, and the two-time AL MVP emphatically says he has never gambled on sports or asked anybody to bet on sports for him.

Further, Ohtani said Monday he has never knowingly paid a bookie to cover somebody else’s bets. Mizuhara also said Ohtani does not bet, and Bowyer’s attorney said the same.

Mizuhara told ESPN on March 19 that Ohtani paid his gambling debts at the interpreter’s request, saying the bets were on international soccer, the NBA, the NFL and college football. If that were true, Ohtani could face trouble even if he didn’t make the bets himself — but ESPN said Mizuhara dramatically changed his story the following day, claiming Ohtani had no knowledge of the gambling debts and had not transferred any money to bookmakers.

MLB rules prohibit players and team employees from wagering — even legally — on baseball. They also ban betting on other sports with illegal or offshore bookmakers.

What’s next for Ohtani?

Ohtani has played in every Dodgers game since the story broke, and he is expected to be their designated hitter in most regular-season games this season while baseball’s investigation continues.

Ohtani says his legal team has alerted authorities to the theft by Mizuhara, although his team has repeatedly declined to say which authorities have been told, according to ESPN.

Ohtani’s new interpreter is Will Ireton, a longtime Dodgers employee and fluent Japanese speaker who has filled several jobs with the team in everything from game preparation and analytics to recruiting free-agent pitches. But Ireton won’t be Ohtani’s constant companion, and manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday he’s optimistic that Ohtani will become closer to his teammates without the “buffer” provided for years by Mizuhara.

What don’t we know?

MLB’s investigation of Ohtani’s role in the events could last weeks or months, and it’s unlikely to be publicized until it’s complete. No one outside of Ohtani’s inner circle knows what it will find or how serious any repercussions could be, and nobody outside the circle is making informed speculation about the process.

One major question looms: How did Mizuhara have enough access to Ohtani’s bank accounts to get the alleged millions without Ohtani knowing? Is the slugger overly trusting, or is he wildly negligent in managing his vast fortune, which includes years of lavish endorsement deals in addition to his baseball salaries? Why didn’t the team around him, including his agent, do more to prevent the possibility of the theft he claims?

Finally, where is Mizuhara? Anybody who knows isn’t saying. He was fired in South Korea and apparently didn’t travel home with the Dodgers. Japanese media have visited his home in Southern California to look for him. Although he was born in Japan, Mizuhara’s life is in the U.S. — but his life will never be the same.

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