Madi WIlson, the Queensland-born swimmer, has contracted COVID-19 in Italy, and was moved into hospital on Saturday for further care and observation. Wilson was in Italy to participate in the International Swim League event with her team, the Los Angeles Current.
Wilson shared the news on Instagram over the weekend, explaining that she believes being run down physically and mentally may have made her more susceptible to contracting COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated. She described the diagnosis as a “huge wake up call”, adding that “Covid is a serious thing and when it comes it hits very hard.”
She ended the post by thanking those around her for their support, particularly her LA teammates, and said she’d be taking some time to rest and hoped to be ready to bounce back ‘in no time’.
Many of her fellow Australian swimmers commented their support, including Kyle Chalmers, Brianna Throssell, and Ariarne Titmus. Her LA current teammates Anastasiya Gorbenko, Abbey Weitzeil and Tom Shields, as well as coach David Marsh, also sent well wishes to Madi, with Marsh commenting, “Stay strong Madi – you’ll be back crushing it again soon 🙏” and Weitzeil commenting, “A true star!! Cheering loud for u to get better soon!! 😩😩💕💕🌊🌊🌊”.
Previous Instagram posts show Wilson enjoying the sights of central and southern Italy, including Rome, Vatican City and the island of Capri, with teammates including Weitzeil, in between training sessions.
Wilson most recently won Olympic gold for her participation in the 4x100metre freestyle event at the 2020 Olympics alongside Mollie O’Callaghan, Emma McKeon and Cate Campbell. Following their win, Wilson posted a photo of the team on Instagram with the caption, “Couldn’t be prouder to be an Aussie. What a team! 💛💚”.
Wilson also received gold and silver medals as a heat swimmer for the 4×100 metre freestyle and medley relay teams at the 2016 Rio Olympics. In 2019, as part of the gold medal winning women’s 4x200m freestyle relay team at the World Championships in South Korea, Wilson and her teammates McKeon, Titmus and Throssell set a new world record.
Image: Delly Carr/Swimming Australia via Getty Images
This article first appeared on Over60.