After the Finland-Canada match was postponed on Thursday due to the norovirus outbreak among Finnish players, it looked like the virus could become the story of the women’s hockey event at the Milan-Cortina Olympics. Jason and I discussed the medical side of the virus yesterday The hockey showbut the one thing we have made clear is that norovirus is highly contagious and easily transmissible between people. As we know in hockey, you never want to give an opponent momentum, but it looks like norovirus will be a story at these Olympics as we move forward after it was announced that The Swiss women’s hockey team was in isolation after one of their players was diagnosed with the virus.No one wants matches to be disrupted, postponed or canceled for obvious reasons, and Switzerland made the right decision by telling its players to stay in the Olympic Village and isolate from others rather than go to and participate in the Olympic Opening Ceremony. Switzerland defeated the Czech Republic 4-3 in a shootout earlier today, and after the match the Swiss player was diagnosed with norovirus. So we may not see norovirus hit at this event just yet, based on what we know medically about the virus.
If there is a silver lining: Switzerland has not even thought about asking the IIHF and the IOC to reschedule the matches at this point. When it comes to one player, the goal is to prevent anyone else from becoming infected with the virus so that Switzerland and Canada can meet on Saturday. Finland, whose team was decimated by the virus on Thursday, indicated they are getting healthier after 13 players were sidelined yesterday. According to reports “[e]live skaters and all three goaltenders participated in practice on Friday,” against ten skaters.
What should worry organizers is that there is a chance that Switzerland’s participation in today’s match against the Czech Republic could have helped the transmission of the virus again. Normally the time when someone is most contagious is the few days after they feel better, but hockey is a contact sport where players come into close contact with each other. With the Czech Republic having Saturday off after starting the tournament with a 0-1-1 start, they must be extra careful in monitoring for symptoms in their players.
We’ve seen some great things in the first few days of the Olympic women’s hockey tournament, so far Italy recording their first victory in Olympic history and the French women’s hockey team skating at the Olympics for the first time. All the games have been quite competitive as parity begins to show on the world stage, and perhaps tomorrow we’ll finally see every team play their first Olympic hockey game of 2026 when Canada meets Switzerland and Finland takes the ice against Team USA. My fingers are crossed for that.
What shouldn’t be forgotten, however, is how easily a major event like the Olympics can be derailed due to a microscopic creature wreaking havoc on the human body for a few days. We know from the COVID-19 pandemic how the Olympics caused headaches for athletes and organizers when it came to keeping players healthy for competition, and it might be wise to use the same lessons learned to keep athletes healthy in Milan-Cortina over the next two weeks.
It is a shame for the Swiss team to miss the opening ceremony. I know how many athletes and coaches look forward to that experience, but I’m pretty sure all of these players, coaches and team staff would skip the ceremony if it cost them a chance at an Olympic medal. After Switzerland opened with a win over the Czech Republic, they are one step closer to potentially bringing hardware home.
We’ll see if all Swiss players are available for their match against Canada tomorrow, and we’ll keep an eye on how many players can suit up for the Final against the US. I hope no one else contracts the virus and has to miss matches, and that both Switzerland and Finland can recover from this medical setback in their quest for medals. No one expected this kind of setbacks!
It sucks to skip the fun stuff as an Olympic athlete, but no one will complain if isolation results in winning a medal.
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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