Olympic Swimmer Says She Was Forced to Leave Son Behind

U.S.|The Spanish swimmer Ona Carbonell says she was forced to permission her breastfeeding lad astatine home.

• July 21, 2021, 6:53 p.m. ET

The Spanish creator swimmer Ona Carbonell is expressing her “disappointment and disillusionment” that she has been told she cannot bring her lad to Japan for the Tokyo Olympics portion she is breastfeeding him.

Carbonell said successful an Instagram video this week that she would not beryllium bringing her son, Kai, who is astir a twelvemonth old, to the Games, and that she had been made to take betwixt her household and her Olympic goals successful creator swimming, the athletics formerly known arsenic synchronized swimming.

“Well, erstwhile Kai was born, I realized that I was getting acceptable and I could scope the Olympic Games successful Tokyo, the archetypal happening I asked was if I could bring Kai with maine arsenic I was breastfeeding him, and they said no,” Carbonell said successful Spanish successful the video arsenic she breastfed her son.

“A fewer weeks ago, immoderate pistillate athletes started posting astir this connected societal media,” she said. “The taxable was to take betwixt household and breastfeeding oregon to enactment successful the Olympic Games.”

“We were told this was not compatible,” she said.

Carbonell, 31, is competing successful her 3rd Olympics. She won a metallic medal successful the duet contention and a bronze medal successful the squad contention successful London successful 2012, and placed 4th successful the duet contention successful Rio de Janeiro successful 2016.

She said that she and her manager petitioned the organizers of the Tokyo Games to let her to question to Japan with Kai. When she heard backmost astir 2 weeks ago, she said, she was told that the conditions had been acceptable by the Japanese government.

Olympic organizers barred spectators from astir events earlier this month, aft a caller authorities of exigency was declared successful Tokyo successful effect to a abrupt spike successful coronavirus cases. The International Olympic Committee did not instantly respond to a petition for remark astir Carbonell’s video.

“The conditions imposed are that Kai and Pablo would person to enactment successful a hotel,” Carbonell said successful the video, referring to the boy’s father, Pablo Ibáñez, “and we wouldn’t cognize however acold it is until we’re there.” She said they would not beryllium allowed to permission the edifice for the duration of their clip successful Japan. The Olympic opening ceremonial is connected Friday and the Games tally done Aug. 8.

“For maine to spell breastfeed Kai whenever helium needs it during the day, I would person to permission the Olympic villa, the team’s bubble, and spell to their hotel,” she said. Doing so, she said, would hazard her teammates’ health.