Olympic icon Usain Bolt tests positive for COVID-19

By Britt Hayes | August 26, 2020 | 3:40pm

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Olympic icon Usain Bolt tests positive for COVID-19

Photo: Mike Hewitt

There are some people who still foolishly believe that the COVID-19 coronavirus only afflicts those with weakened immune systems/immune disorders and the elderly. Should those people—despite everything that’s happened over the past six months—somehow still need evidence that COVID-19 can infect literally anyone, there’s this: Usain Bolt, the eight-time Olympic medalist and famed sprinter, has tested positive for the coronavirus. The retired athlete’s positive diagnosis was confirmed to Reuters by the health ministry in his native Jamaica.

Though Bolt says he was not experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, he assured followers in a video posted to Twitter that he’s adhering to safety guidelines. “I’m trying to be responsible, so I’m going to stay in,” Bolt said:

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Meanwhile, in social media posts promoting an article about the Olympian’s diagnosis, NBC News used photos of comedian Kevin Hart instead of Bolt. Hart called out the news organization on his Instagram account, where he shared a screenshot of the offending NBC News Facebook post accompanied by a caption that begins with several emojis of a man performing the face-palm gesture. Although Hart cracked jokes about it, he described the NBC News error as “Disrespectful on so many levels,” adding, “All you can do is laugh.”

The public relations Twitter account for NBC News subsequently apologized to Hart, referring to the error as a “bad technical glitch in how photos show up on Facebook.” Sure.