Olympic Officials Ordered An Insane Amount Of Condoms For The Rio Games

Brazil reportedly ordered over 450,000 condoms for the Rio Olympics this summer. This is three times as many don't-get-pregnant socks than London ordered for the last Olympics.

Now, when I first read about this my reaction was, "WOOP! Obviously hot Brazilians have a lot more sex than English people!" Unfortunately, the more probable reason behind this enormous condom order is 100 percent more depressing: the Zika virus.

The Zika virus, which causes severe, tragic birth defects when a carrier has a child, broke out in Brazil last year. It's been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the World Health Organization, and it is really scary stuff.

The virus is mostly transmitted by mosquitos, but can also be passed on through intercourse without a condom. What makes it all even worse is 80 percent of Zika cases have no symptoms -- meaning people going to the Olympics could take it back to their home countries and have absolutely no idea.

Now, no one has come out and said these condoms were ordered for this specific purpose. But, considering the condom-buying overkill by the government, I think the implication is pretty clear.

The Olympics are supposed to be about people of all nations coming together to amiably compete in pointless, but very cool, physical contests (instead of just going to war, which is what we used to do).

Unfortunately, this time around, the games might turn out to be about people from all nations amiably coming together to risk infection from a deadly disease, which they could then carry back to all their countries.

Because Zika is primarily spread by mosquitos, taking precautionary measures can be incredibly difficult. Thankfully, mosquitos are at their least active during August and September. Although, as CNN reports, even during these cool periods, the temperatures are still around 70 degrees Fahrenheit in Brazil, meaning mosquitos persist year-round.

And to make matters worse, seeing as countries in the Northern Hemisphere will be in the full swing of summer — aka, mosquito paradise — the danger of the disease spreading in such countries from people coming home after the games is pretty scary.

Considering all this, a lot of people are calling for the Olympics to be called off this year, including New York University bioethicist Art Caplan, who specializes in this type of thing.

Even soccer superstar goal tender Hope Solo says she won't be going to the Rio Olympics unless there is a significant change.

Of course, considering the fact Brazil spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the games already, canceling the Olympics is about as likely as me dating Jennifer Lawrence but getting bored and breaking up with her to date Michelle Obama instead.

Citations: Amount of condoms ordered for Rio Olympics will make your jaw hit the floor Read more: http://metro.co.uk/2016/05/23/amount-of-condoms-ordered-for-rio-olympics-will-make-your-jaw-hit-the-floor-5899265/#ixzz49Ug2lXft (Metro)