Swine flu delays Guo Jingjing’s return to the pool

Olympic diving champion Guo Jingjing’s return to the pool will be delayed after China withdrew from a grand prix diving event in the United States next month because of the global swine flu scare.

China Sports Daily said the national diving team, which won seven of the eight gold medals at last year’s Beijing Olympics, would not take part in the FINA Diving Grand Prix in Fort Lauderdale from May 7-10.

Guo, who won her third and fourth Olympic golds last August, had been planning to return to competition for the first time since the Games at the tournament but has now cancelled her flight, the official newspaper of the sports ministry added.

The United States has reported 65 cases of the new strain of flu, which has already killed 159 people in Mexico. China has yet to report any cases of infection.

Ironically, the Chinese team returned to Beijing on Tuesday from Mexico City, where they won seven of eight titles at a world series event.

The event went ahead despite the swine flu outbreak although no spectators were allowed in. The Chinese divers underwent physical checks but were not quarantined after their arrival back on home soil, state news reported.