The West African country of Guinea has reversed an earlier decision to pull out of the Olympics and will send a delegation of five athletes to the Tokyo Games.
Minister of Sports Sanoussy Bantama Sow made the announcement after national and international outcries that followed an earlier declaration that Guinea would not send athletes to Tokyo, blaming the coronavirus and its variants.
Guinea had announced late Wednesday that it was canceling its participation to protect the health of its athletes.
Only days before the statement, Guinean Olympic committee secretary general Ben Daouda Nassoko had told The Associated Press that funds had been released for the delegation to go to Tokyo.
Fatoumata Yarie Camara, a freestyle wrestler, was one of the five athletes affected by the decision.
Guinea has participated in the Olympics 11 times but has never won a medal. North Korea is the only country to pull out of the Tokyo Olympics, also citing concerns related to COVID-19.
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