American swimmer Michael Andrew is legitimately a gold medal contender in several events of the Tokyo Olympics. He told reporters last week that: he hadn’t received the vaccine and didn’t plan to in the ” distant “. He hadn’t received the vaccine and didn’t plan to in the “distant” or immediate future.

Andrew made a defense of his decision on Fox Business, stating that he is concerned about his body’s reaction to the Opening Ceremonies being held less than ten days away.

Andrew unwilling to compromise preparation

“I am an elite athlete. Everything we put into our bodies is carefully calculated. Knowing the time frame for the Olympic trials, I was not willing to risk my time in the pool. The fact that the vaccine’s effectiveness is lower than my risk of getting COVID means I realized that it wasn’t necessary.

American Olympians don’t have to be vaccinated. Andrew stated that he did not want to miss any pre-Olympics days, but being unvaccinated is a big risk with the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Tokyo. He could be removed from the events if he tests positive.

Andrew insists that he is not anti-vax

Andrew’s decision not to get the vaccine has drawn a lot of criticism from social media, particularly since it’s been proven safe. Andrew said that he does not plan to get the vaccine even in the “distant” future, but he stated to Daily Reuters that he isn’t anti-vax.

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“We are not anti-vax. “It’s not that this is something we do intentionally, Andrew stated. This is the first time that I have received hate messages. It was quite interesting.

Andrew believes that his inability to vaccinate is an accurate representation of America’s privilege.

He said, “I’m going to the games not just unvaccinated but also as an American. I’m representing my country multiple ways and the freedoms that we have to make such a decision.”