DR Congo cancels World Cup training camp as Ebola outbreak spreads
Theo Al Jazeera English
The Democratic Republic of Congo national football team canceled a three-day training camp and public farewell in Kinshasa due to an Ebola outbreak in the east. Friendlies against Denmark and Chile remain as scheduled. The team will not be affected by U.S. entry restrictions, allowing them to compete in the World Cup.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) national football team has canceled a three-day training camp ahead of the World Cup, as well as a planned public farewell in the capital Kinshasa, following an Ebola outbreak in the eastern part of the country.
The team's friendly against Denmark in Liege, Belgium on June 3, and against Chile in southern Spain on June 9, will go ahead as planned, team spokesman Jerry Kalemo confirmed to the Associated Press on Wednesday.
“The preparation had three phases: In Kinshasa to say goodbye to the people, Belgium and Spain with two friendlies against Denmark in Liege and Chile in Spain, and the third phase from June 11 in Houston, USA. Only one phase was canceled — that was the Kinshasa phase,” Kalemo said.
The team’s pre-tournament preparations will now take place elsewhere following the outbreak of a rare strain of Ebola known as Bundibugyo, which is believed to have killed more than 130 people and caused nearly 600 suspected infections.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared it a public health emergency of international concern.
All DRC players and French coach Sebastien Desabre live outside the Central African nation, with most playing in France. Some coaching staff based in the DRC “will leave in the next few hours,” Kalemo said.
World soccer's governing body FIFA said in a statement that it is “aware and monitoring the situation regarding the Ebola outbreak, and is in close coordination with the DRC Football Federation to ensure the team is fully informed of medical and security guidelines.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week said the United States will ban entry for all foreign nationals who have been in the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan within the past three weeks. The ban takes effect for 30 days.
A U.S. official said the DRC World Cup team will not be affected by the CDC entry ban because they have been training in Europe for several weeks. Team members, coaches and other officials who have not returned to the DRC in the past three weeks will not be subject to the entry ban. Those in the Congolese World Cup delegation who have returned to the DRC in the past 21 days must comply with quarantine requirements similar to those for U.S. citizens returning from affected countries. This exemption does not apply to Congolese fans who wish to travel to the U.S. to watch the World Cup.
The White House World Cup Task Force, under the Department of Homeland Security, stressed that it is “coordinating closely” with multiple agencies on health and security issues, and that the government is “closely monitoring” the outbreak.
The DRC, which qualified for the World Cup by winning a playoff tournament in Mexico, is in Group K. They will face Portugal in their opening match in Houston on June 17. The Leopards will then take on Colombia in Guadalajara on June 23 before facing Uzbekistan in Atlanta in their final group stage match on June 27.
This is the DRC's first World Cup appearance since 1974, when the country was known as Zaire, sparking celebrations across a nation scarred by decades of conflict.
