July 23, 2021
By Mari Saito
TOKYO (Reuters) – Sitting by the window of a small hotel room in Tokyo, Dutch skateboarder Candy Jacobs thanked her fans for their support and said she was taking things day-by-day after being forced to withdraw from the 2020 Olympics due to a positive COVID-19 test.
Jacobs, who was set to compete in the street skateboarding event, said she was suffering no major physical symptoms and had lots of energy, which she had no outlet for in quarantine.
“Mentally it’s a mission, like I’m definitely trying to take it day by day and not look too far ahead,” the 31-year-old said in a video she posted to her Instagram account.
Joking that she might next take her Instagram followers on a ‘tour’ of her small hotel room, she looked to be in good spirits despite the sudden exit.
“My heart still hurts but I will definitely get through it,” said Jacobs, who used to work as a social worker but decided to focus on the sport full-time to train for Tokyo 2020 when she learned skateboarding would be an Olympics sport.
Her video drew hundreds of comments from fellow skateboarders and fans, who urged her to stay strong.
Jacobs noted that it was only day two of her 10-day quarantine and expressed how difficult it was to be apart from her team mates training in the nearby Olympic Village.
She had said earlier that her team had been following COVID protocols so they would be able to take part in the skate event.
The Dutch Olympic team said its medical advisers have continuously been in contact with the athlete.
The delegation’s Chef de Mission Pieter van den Hoogenband described the situation as “Candy’s worst nightmare”.
Skateboarding, long associated with youth and street culture, is making an inaugural appearance at the Tokyo Olympics.
(Reporting by Mari Saito; Editing by Peter Rutherford)