Olympics Live: 2 Aussie curlers out of Games due to COVID

BEIJING (AP) — The Latest on the Beijing Winter Olympics:

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Australia’s first-ever Olympic mixed doubles curling team has pulled out of the Beijing Games after Tahli Gill returned a series of positive COVID-19 tests.

The Australian Olympic Committee said it was trying to make arrangements to have Gill and Dean Hewitt fly home rather than having Gill remain in an isolation hotel. They will miss their final two games and finish 0-7 in round robin play.

Gill contracted COVID-19 prior to the games. Ongoing testing alternated between negative and positive. She had been allowed to compete under the close contact arrangements after discussions with the IOC and games organizers.

Attempts to return Gill to competition were rebuffed by the IOC and health authorities, Australian Olympic team head Geoff Lipshut said.

“We made the case that Tahli was at the end of the infection cycle but further positive results early this morning ended our hopes. Rather than remain in isolation, we now have the option of returning Tahli and Dean home,” Lipshut said.

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The start of the men’s downhill skiing competition at the Beijing Games has been postponed again because of high wind.

The race was scheduled to start at 11 a.m. Beijing time, but organizers first said it would not start before noon. They will now decide at noon if it can start an hour later.

It’s the first race of the Alpine competition at the Winter Olympics.

Saturday’s third and final training session had to be canceled because of high wind.

The world’s best skiers only saw The Rock course up close for the first time on Thursday.

At the top of the course, the wind was whipping at 30 mph, with gusts up to 40 mph, when the race was originally scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.

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Zoi