The U.S. Olympic Committee’s security chief sent a letter to potential Winter Olympic athletes saying there are no indications that recent developments between the U.S. and North Korea have compromised security in South Korea.
The letter, obtained by The Associated Press shortly after it was sent Friday, makes no suggestion that the U.S. Team is considering skipping the Pyeongchang Games for security reasons.
But Chief Security Officer Nicole Deal does write that provocations that have been volleyed between the United States and North Korea are likely to persist for the foreseeable future, and “should not be dismissed as insignificant nor feared as precursors of an inevitable conflict.”
The letter comes at the end of a week in which France’s sports minister suggested the country’s athletes would stay home if security could not be guaranteed.
The International Olympic Committee, trying to calm concerns, reiterated that in conversations with high-level officials in China and South Korea, none have expressed doubt about the Winter Games proceeding as scheduled, next February.
The USOC also sent out a public statement Friday from CEO Scott Blackmun.
“We will continue to work with our State Department and local organizers to ensure that our athletes, and our entire delegation, are safe,” he said.
The letter, sent to athletes, national governing bodies and other Olympic leaders in the United States, said the USOC’s security division is operating as “business as usual for our security planning and preparations.”
Deal writes that the USOC is reviewing crisis management plans that address a range of potential scenarios “to ensure our athletes, and our entire delegation, are safe.”
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