US Olympians have known about the filthy 2016 Olympic venues that could make them 'violently ill' for years - and they aren't flipping out
Ivan Bulaja, a Croatian-born coach of Austria's 49er-class sailing team, told the AP that his athletes have been sick vomiting and with diarrhea because of Guanabara Bay's water conditions.
"This is by far the worst water quality we've ever seen in our sailing careers," Bulaja said.
Adams, however, explained that US Sailing has been working with the United States Olympic Committee to conduct its own tests on the water quality of Guanabara Bay, and they've found the results satisfactory.
"We wanted to take actions into our own hands and test the water and make sure the playing field was safe for our athletes and would be a fair environment for competition," he explained. "And based on the study we did and the feedback we got from our medical experts, we're satisfied that the athletes are safe and the competition will be fair."
Farrah Hall, an American windsurfer who finished 20th in the 2012 London Olympics and is currently in Rio preparing for next summer's competition, said the pollution levels will all depend on the weather.
"If there isn't any rain, the physical levels of floating garbage in the areas where we race aren't as bad as depicted in the media," she told Business Insider. "The windsurfers mainly race in the area underneath the famous Sugarloaf Mountain, which is close to the mouth of Guanabara Bay. However, further up the bay, there is less tidal flushing and there can be more buildup of trash."
Hall also explained that avoiding debris is part of any competition.
"In Miami, a very urban venue where the US Sailing Team spends a lot of time training and competing, there are obstacles in the water to avoid such as huge clumps of shedding sea grass and the occasional plastic bag or two-by-four boards. Obviously we would prefer to race where there isn't any debris, but at any event we don't have much control over what's floating in the water."
Brazilian Olympic officials said that they will work hard to clean Guanabara Bay over the course of the year. Hall isn't particularly optimistic.
"I haven't really seen any clean-up efforts happening in my area," she said. "I've read that the government has boats out to collect trash. It is a huge job, so I'm not sure there will be much of an impact before the Games."
At any rate, athletes are staying focused on training and competition and not letting the issue distract them. Caroline Lind, a two-time American gold medalist in women's heavyweight rowing, said that the pollution is out of her control.