Bryson DeChambeau Unregretful After Missing Olympics with Covid: ‘The Vaccine Doesn’t Necessarily Prevent It’
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Bryson DeChambeau was planning to represent the United States at the Tokyo Olympics, but the unvaccinated golfer was knocked after testing positive for Covid-19 shortly before leaving for Japan.
It’s statistically probable that had DeChambeau been vaccinated, he would have been able to compete in the Olympics. Despite being unable to fulfill his dream, DeChambeau told reporters he has no regrets about his decision to refuse the jab.
“The vaccine doesn’t necessarily prevent it from happening,” DeChambeau said after his nine-hole pro-am round at TPC Southwind, according to ESPN. “I’m young enough, I’d rather give it [the vaccine] to people who need it. I don’t need it. I’m a healthy, young individual that will continue to work on my health.
“I don’t think taking the vaccine away from someone who needs it is a good thing. My dad is a perfect example. He got it [the vaccine] early on because he’s a diabetic. People like that need to get it. My mom got it. I don’t want to take away that ability.”
After acknowledging his parents are vaccinated, DeChambeau didn’t close the door completely on getting the jab for himself. “Now as time goes on, if it [the vaccine] is mainstream, really, really mainstream, then yeah,” he added.
It’s not clear when DeChambeau will consider the vaccine to be “mainstream.” In addition to DeChambeau’s parents, more than 165 million Americans are fully vaccinated and more than 1.16 billion people around the globe have received the jab. Recent data also reports more than 90 percent of Covid-19 cases in the US, and more than 95 percent of hospitalizations and deaths are among unvaccinated people.
“It was always cool to say, ‘Wow, he’s an Olympian. What if I could be an Olympian?’” DeChambeau said after qualifying for the Summer Games earlier this year. “It’s cool to finally be able to say that.” But DeChambeau now has to wait three more years before potentially getting to say he’s an Olympian.
