You can’t blame a person for wanting to take the opportunity of a lifetime: A night out in the City of Lights.
But a little night on the town has cost Brazilian Olympic swimmer Ana Carolina Vieira her spot in Paris after she was sent home for sneaking out of the Olympic Village.
Vieira and her boyfriend, fellow Olympic swimmer Gabriel Santos, reportedly hit the town without permission from the team on July 26, a day before both competed at the Games.
On Saturday, Vieira and the Brazilian women’s 4×100 freestyle relay team were eliminated after placing seventh in the second heat. Santos and the men’s team were bounced after finishing fourth their qualifying heat.
After the events, the couple was called to speak with team officials about the night out.
According to Brazilian media, she abused them during the meeting and was swiftly sent on a flight back home to South America.
Her reaction reportedly was described as “disrespectful and aggressively challenge(ing).”
Santos, on the other hand, was merely given a warning after apologizing for breaking the rules.
“The Brazilian Confederation of Aquatic Sports (CBDA), the COB decided to punish the two athletes for having left the Olympic Village without authorization last Friday.” the statement from the body began.
“In addition to this fact, the athlete Ana Carolina, in a disrespectful and aggressive manner, contested the technical decision taken by the Brazilian Swimming Team committee.
“Thus, athlete Gabriel Santos was punished with a warning and athlete Ana Carolina Vieira was punished with removal from the delegation. She will return to Brazil immediately.”
Brazil’s swim team leader Gustavo Otsuka expressed his disappointment in Vieira and the situation, saying: “We’re not here playing or taking a vacation.
“We’re here working for Brazil, for the 200 million taxpayers who are working for us. We can’t play around here. She took a completely inappropriate position to make her point, her dismay, about the formation of the relay.”
On Monday, Vieira spoke out about the situation in a live story on Instagram, saying that she left her belongings behind in Paris while asserting she did nothing wrong.
“I left there and left my materials, I didn’t know what to do,” she said, according to Brazilian outlet Tyla.
“My things are there (in the Olympic Village), I went to the airport in shorts. I had to open my suitcase at the airport. I’m in Portugal, I’m going to Recife and then to São Paulo.
“I am helpless, I have had no access to anything, I have not been able to speak to anyone. They told me to contact the COB channels. But how am I going to get in touch?
“I have already filed a complaint of harassment and nothing has been resolved, harassment within the team.”
She added that she will be speaking with lawyers over the matter.