Rio Crowd Boos Hope Solo in USA Olympic Opener

U.S. goalkeeper Hope Solo was booed and taunted every time she touched the ball Wednesday night in the women’s national soccer team’s Rio Olympic opener versus New Zealand. Solo has drawn the ire of the Brazilian people for her repeated criticisms of the country’s handling of the Zika outbreak amid this month’s Olympic Games. Fans at Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte jeered, whistled, and even chanted “Zika!” in unison whenever Solo made contact with the ball. Following the match, Solo told NBC Sports that she didn’t mind the heckling: “They were having fun. At least it’s loud in the stadium. I’d rather have that than hearing a needle drop.” The U.S. team won 2-0.