Sparks' Wiese tested positive for COVID-19
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Los Angeles Sparks guard Sydney Wiese said Friday that she tested positive for COVID-19.
Wiese made the announcement in a series of tweets, saying she's shown only mild symptoms - a loss of taste and smell.
I tested positive for COVID-19. I am feeling well- fortunate to only show mild symptoms, but I am capable of spreading it. All of us are united in our fight to stop this spread and keep everyone safe/healthy. I will do my part, and I hope you do too.
— Sydney Wiese (@swiesebaby24) March 27, 2020
The symptoms I showed were loss of taste and smell. They are newer symptoms but they ARE symptoms.
— Sydney Wiese (@swiesebaby24) March 27, 2020
Wiese also called for tests to be made more available to the public, revealing she was denied twice despite her symptoms.
The problem we are facing is lack of accessibility to testing. I was denied two times because I wasn’t showing enough symptoms, but I am someone who SHOULD receive a test. Unsure if I am well or not, some symptoms, but not the main ones.
— Sydney Wiese (@swiesebaby24) March 27, 2020
Wiese was playing in Spain during the WNBA's winter offseason when the coronavirus pandemic shut down the country's women's basketball campaign earlier this month. AE Sedis Basquet supported her decision to immediately return home just days before the United States implemented a complete travel ban from Europe, Wiese told The Orange County Register's Mirjam Swanson last week.
The 24-year-old is the first WNBA player to reveal a positive test for COVID-19. However, Las Vegas Aces star Liz Cambage said Monday she believes she survived a "severe case" of the virus in December while playing in China.