Winter Olympics 2026: Norovirus outbreak puts 14 members of Finnish women's hockey team in quarantine ahead of first game

The Finnish women’s hockey team is scheduled to take on Canada on Thursday, but that game is now in danger of not being played. A norovirus outbreak throughout the Finnish team has led to over a dozen players being quarantined ahead of the contest, per multiple reports.

Symptoms of the illness showed up Wednesday, as the Finnish team canceled its training session due to four players being sick. That figure jumped to 14 on Thursday. It’s unclear how many players on the team currently have norovirus. Some players are being quarantined due to possible exposure to the virus

Because of the quarantine, only 10 Finnish players participated in the team’s pre-game skate. With so few players available for the Finnish team, the game is in jeopardy of being canceled. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) are expected to make a call on whether the game will proceed as planned. 

The following 14 Finnish players are currently either sick or being quarantined due to norovirus:

Goalies: Sanni Ahola
Defenders: Sini Karjaleinen, Elli Suoranta, Ronja Savolainen
Forwards: Michelle Karvinen, Julia Liikala, Emma Nuutinen, Jenniina Nylund, Julia Schalin, Susanna Tapani, Noora Tulus, Viivi Vainikka, Sanni Vanhanen, Emilia Vesa

Vainikka was present at the pre-game skate Thursday, per Claire Hanna of TSN, so it appears Vainikka was a late addition to the list of sick or quarantined players.

Finland’s head coach Tero Lehtera pushed for the game to be canceled Thursday, saying he didn’t want to put his players, or Team Canada’s players at risk.

Norovirus is a highly contagious illness that has symptoms similar to the flu. It typically lasts a few days before clearing up. 

Thursday’s game between Canada and Finland was set to be a big one. Canada won the gold medal at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, with Finland winning the bronze. 

The two teams are still scheduled to play Thursday at 2:10 p.m. ET, though that could change due to the norovirus outbreak.

This story will be updated.

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