After receiving a devastating morning telephone call that she had tested positive for COVID-19, Tahli Gill and her Australian mixed doubles curling teammate Dean Hewitt were yesterday out of the Beijing Olympics.
A few hours later, another call. They were back in.
They barely had enough time to grab their uniforms out of their packed bags — a flight home had been booked for today — jump in a cab and get from the Olympic Village to the Ice Cube for a game against Switzerland.
Photo: Reuters
Highlighting a day they would never forget, Gill threw the takeout shot that resulted in a three-ender, or three points, that tied the game at six in the sixth end. The Aussies won 9-6 for their first victory after opening their first Olympics with seven straight losses.
They fist-bumped Swiss curlers Martin Rios and Jenny Perret, hugged each other and then waved to a spectator who occasionally had yelled: “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” in the mostly empty arena.
“You know what? They just experienced the COVID Olympics 101 right there,” said the Aussie duo’s coach, defending mixed doubles gold medalist John Morris of Canada. “I’m sure it was a really tough time for Tahli. I was heartbroken for her when I heard they were out. I’m absolutely ecstatic they’re still playing in this.”
Coincidentally, the Aussies’ final game of the round robin was later against Morris and his new partner, Rachel Homan.
The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) announced late yesterday morning that Gill returned a series of positive tests the night before and that rather than having her go into an isolation hotel, she and Hewitt would be heading home.
The AOC continued to press her case, and shortly before the scheduled game time, it announced that the medical expert panel examined Gill’s cycle threshold values — considered an indicator of how much virus an infected person is carrying — following polymerase chain reaction testing during the previous 24 hours and determined that they fell into an acceptable range. With that, the Aussies were back in.
Gill had COVID-19 before the Olympics and had been allowed to compete under the close contact program, at least until the positive tests late on Saturday.
“It’s just been the craziest time,” Gill said. “It was down to the wire, pretty much. The medical team, they were able to review it. I’m so grateful that they put forward a good case. It just shows I’m not infectious.”
After getting cleared to play, it was such a scramble digging through her luggage, ripping out clothes to get to her uniform, that Gill grabbed the wrong glove.
“It was really crazy, but I think the fact that we were able to regroup, refocus and pull it off is really cool, and definitely something we’re going to take as a learning development going forward,” she said. “It’s just been the most amazing experience.”
Gill and Hewitt were the first Australian curlers to qualify for the Olympics.
“You don’t realize what you’ve got until it’s gone,” Hewitt said. “Once we heard that we actually could play again, it made it extra special for us. Embrace the Olympics, embrace what we had and be grateful for it because it’s something that can be taken away from you at a moment’s notice. We’re so stoked and we can’t wait for our next game as well.”
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