Middle-distance runner Sudha Singh, who arrived from Rio on Saturday, is being treated for viral infection in an isolation room at a hospital here since Saturday. Besides dengue and malaria, the athlete is being investigated for a possible Zika virus infection.
According to a report by The Times of India, the 30-year-old sprinter, who took part in the 3000m steeplechase at the Olympics, complained of fever, joint pain and fatigue upon her arrival.
After initial treatment at the Sports Authority of India, she was rushed to hospital once her blood pressure fell to worrisome levels, sources were quoted as telling TOI.
To rule out any possibility of Zika, her samples are likely to be sent to a virology institute in Pune, the report says.
Marathon runner OP Jaisha, who returned with Sudha on Saturday, has shown similar but milder symptoms. Another marathoner, Kavita Raut, took ill in Rio. All three were staying in the same apartment in Rio, one of the places affected by the Zika outbreak. Sources confirmed that the girls were exposed to mosquitoes at the apartment, the prime vectors of the disease.
