USA Officials Worried About AIDS

On the eve of the Atlanta Olympics, U.S. boxing officials admit they’re worried about the possibility--however remote--of boxers getting the AIDS virus, especially when competing against athletes from some African countries where the disease is rampant.

“I just pray to God nothing happens,” said Jerry Dusenberry, president of USA Boxing.

Though many states now require AIDS testing for pro boxers, international officials have rejected calls for mandatory AIDS testing for reasons partly medical and partly political.

But the chief doctor for the boxing competition in Atlanta warns that boxers could be at risk in a competition where athletes are coming from around the world.

“It’s a blood-transmitted disease and we certainly do see blood shed in boxing,” said Dr. Robert Voy, a Las Vegas doctor who is deputy medical chairman for the International Amateur Boxing Association. “It’s a risk and we have the responsibility to protect young boxers from that risk.”

What is particularly troubling to some is the possibility of boxers meeting opponents from such countries as Zimbabwe, where 17 out of every 100 people are believed infected with the AIDS virus and one of every 40 people has died from the disease.

Zimbabwe has two boxers scheduled to compete in Atlanta, while boxers from Uganda, Kenya and Zambia, where AIDS is also common, are also entered in the boxing competition.

“I don’t want to fight anybody with their blood on me and I get AIDS,” said Zahir Raheem, the 132-pounder on the U.S. team. “The Olympics should be the best time of my life. I don’t want it to turn out to be the worst.”