RIO DE JANEIRO — Hope Solo was again on the receiving end of merciless taunts from Brazilian soccer fans on Saturday, with the crowd for the United States’ clash with France repeatedly jeering the goalkeeper with cries of “Zika.”
Solo, 35, was targeted every time she touched the ball in the opening exchanges at Estadio Mineirao in Belo Horizonte, in what was expected to be the Americans’ toughest test in Group G of the 12-team’s Olympic tournament.
The crowd’s ire emanated from Solo’s public comments and social media messages regarding first her reluctance to travel to Brazil and then her decision to pack huge amounts of mosquito repellent due to the Zika virus.