Volleyball: in BH, Canadian star jokes about dengue, is criticized and apologizes

Star of the Canadian National Team, opposite Kiera Van Ryk, 25 years old, made a joke about dengue fever in Brazil, was criticized and apologized on social media in the early hours of this Wednesday (8).

On Brazilian soil for the Nations League (VNL) dispute, in Rio de Janeiro, Kiera Van Ryk is in Belo Horizonte, where Canada is preparing at the Minas Tênis Clube facilities until Saturday (11) before traveling to the Marvelous City.

On Instagram, Kiera Van Ryk published a photo of the hotel’s closed window during the day and signaled that opening it could be dangerous for the athletes’ health. In the post, which had negative repercussions, the Canadian wrote the caption “When the sun is out, but so is dengue”.

‘When the sun is out, but so is dengue’, wrote Van Ryk

Instagram/@kieravanryk/Reproduction

It is worth mentioning that, in Minas, 376 people died from dengue in 2024, with 2,236 lives lost to the disease throughout Brazil this year. Overall, more than 4.5 million cases have been recorded.

Van Ryk’s post was made precisely on the day she was announced as a new addition to Turkey’s Vakifbank. After three seasons, she left THY Spor Kulübü, where she was Macris’ teammate.

Apology

Also on Instagram, Kiera Van Ryk apologized to Brazilians and said she “would never make a joke about death or illness”.

“Hi, Brazilian friends. I wanted to apologize for the story I posted yesterday [terça-feira, 7] mentioning dengue. Anyone who knows me knows that I would never joke about death or illness. Life is very precious and I never intended to disrespect those who are going through difficulties,” he stated.

According to the Canadian, her intention was to express sadness at not “experiencing the full experience of the beauty of Brazilian culture”.

“The intention of the publication was to express the sadness of not being able to fully experience the beauty of Brazilian culture and community. I’ve heard a lot of good things about Brazil and I’m really grateful to be in an amazing country. I hope you forgive this misunderstanding. I am truly sorry for any pain that was caused. I’m looking forward to playing in your beautiful country”, he concluded.