Athletes with coronavirus

The former Michigan Wolverines star tight end, who went on to play for the Cleveland Browns, Buffalo Bills and New Orleans Saints in a 10-year NFL career from 1999-2008, told the Detroit Free Press he lost 17 pounds and needed to be hospitalized during a bout with the COVID-19 coronavirus. 

In a Minneapolis Star-Tribune article published Oct. 2, 2020, Minnesota Golden Gophers star wide receiver Rashod Bateman revealed he battled chills, night sweats, body aches and the loss of taste and smell during a summertime bout with COVID-19. 

Billion-dollar-earning soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo tested positive for COVID-19 in October 2020, just weeks before Ronaldo's Juventus was to square off against Lionel Messi's Barcelona in UEFA Champions League action. Ronaldo was forced to sit out the Juventus-Barcelona match. 

The former Illinois State defensive end, seen here being blocked in a 2011 game against Youngstown State, told ETOnline that breathing difficulties were the "scariest part" of his bout with coronavirus. Underwood, who went on to a brief run as an NFL practice-squad player, is now best known as the Season 23 star of The Bachelor. 

Desmond Howard, the Heisman-winning Michigan great turned ESPN College GameDay fixture, revealed on Oct. 29, 2020, that he'd tested positive for COVID-19. In an Instagram post, Howard said he was "doing okay," and planned to continue with his broadcast work from home. 
 

On Oct. 27, 2020, during Game 6 of the World Series, Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner was pulled in the middle of the seventh inning after MLB confirmed the slugger had tested positive for COVID-19. Turner would return to the field after the Dodgers won the game and clinched the series -- a move MLB would label as "wrong."  

The Washington Redskins' famed "Secretary of Defense" was doing "much better," former teammate John Riggins said on May 19, 2020, days after it was revealed Dexter Manley had tested positive for coronavirus and was receiving oxygen treatment. The All-Pro defensive end racked up sacks and two Super Bowl rings for the Redskins from 1981-1989. 

The former USC standout and retired Jacksonville Jaguars star, a star offensive tackle for the team from 1995-2001, told the Florida Times-Union that the COVID-19 coronavirus "buried" him, and required a hospitalization. 

Seen in a 2014 game from his final NBA season, Jason Collins, who played 13 seasons for various teams, revealed in a March 24, 2020, statement that he'd tested positive for COVID-19. He said his symptoms included a fever and chest tightness.  

On Oct. 29, 2020, Trevor Lawrence, the quarterback for the nation's consensus No. 1 college football team, announced via Twitter that he'd tested positive for COVID-19. The Clemson star and presumed No. 1 pick of the 2021 NFL Draft said his symptoms were "relatively mild." 

On Oct. 27, 2020, it was reported that Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz had tested positive -- twice -- for COVID-19. The development came just days after Mertz had led the Badgers to a big season-opening win Illinois. Mertz's positive tests were part of a larger outbreak on the Badgers that included head coach Paul Chryst.  

Patrick Ewing gave the basketball world a scare on May 22, 2020, when it was announced the Georgetown head coach and former Hoyas playing great was hospitalized with coronavirus. A few days later, Ewing's son, Patrick Ewing Jr., who also played at Georgetown, said the New York Knicks legend was home and on the mend. 

On June 15, 2020, the agent for Ezekiel Elliott confirmed that the Dallas Cowboys star running back had tested positive for coronavirus. A week later, Elliott reported he was "feeling good." 

Oklahoma State Cowboys linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez announced on June 14, 2020, that he'd tested positive for coronavirus prior to starting team training. In a tweet, he said he'd been "completely asymptomatic," and he urged others to "continue to use extreme caution" in group settings. "COVID-19 is not a hoax and still exists. Be safe, be well, and best wishes," he wrote. 

Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver died Aug. 31, 2020, of complications of Lewy body dementia and COVID-19. He was 75. The World Series-winning New York Mets star also played for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox in a 20-season career.  

Cam Newton tested positive for coronavirus prior to the New England Patriots' scheduled Week 4 NFL game against the Kansas City Chiefs, ESPN's  Adam Schefter first reported on Oct. 3, 2020. 

 

The former LSU quarterback, who took snaps for the Tigers from 1992-1995, tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus on March 28, 2020, he told Louisiana's Acadiana Advocate. 

The Utah Jazz center tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus on March 11, 2020, becoming the first known U.S. professional athlete to do so. The event was seismic, triggering the suspension of the NBA season, and prompting all other major in-season sports to follow suit.   

Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell tested positive for coronavirus, the school announced on Sept. 19, 2020. Norvell missed the Seminoles' game against Miami. He returned to the sidelines for Florida State's Oct. 3 matchup against Jacksonville State. 

Tom Demspey's football story was the stuff of legend: Born without toes on his right foot, Dempsey used the same limb to boot a then-record 63-yard field goal with the New Orleans Saints in 1970. The trailblazer passed away on April 4, 2020, in New Orleans of COVID-19-related complications. He was 73.  

The former guard, who played for Georgetown before transferring and spending the majority of his 1989-1994 college-basketball career at Texas A&M, died of coronavirus-related complications on March 23, 2020, in New York City. He was 48, per the New York Times. 

In March 2020, the Super Bowl-winning New Orleans Saints head coach said he suffered chills and a slight fever before testing positive for the novel coronavirus. Sean Payton has since been cleared to return to work.  

The former USC linebacker, who played for the Trojans from 2013-2016, revealed his COVID-19 coronavirus diagnosis in a March 28, 2020, Instagram post.  "Y'all really stay isolated," Powell wrote. "[Expletive] be all fun and games til u in the hospital getting a shot in yo ahh and Qtips stuck up your nose til it touch your brain."

The middleweight fighter known as Jacaré is seen wearing a mask at his May 8, 2020, weigh-in for UFC 29. Later that same day, Souza and two of his cornermen tested positive for coronavirus. Souza's bout was scrapped; the fighter was said to be asymptomatic.  

Legendary Auburn football head coach Pat Dye, who led the Tigers, including Bo Jackson, to a storied run from 1981-1992, died June 1, 2020. Dye, 80, had tested positive for COVID-19 while being treated for a kidney ailment, his son, Pat Dye Jr., revealed. The elder Dye was said to be asymptomatic for the novel coronavirus.  

In April 2020, the All-Pro linebacker out of Texas A&M revealed he'd contracted the virus even though he "did all the right things." During the worst of the illness, Miller told the Washington Post, he couldn't taste or smell, and his breathing "didn’t feel like it was supposed to." "The first four, five days I was honestly nervous," he said. 

PGA Tour golfer Nick Watney, seen here after missing a putt at the Genesis Invitational in February 2020, tested positive for coronavirus, and withdrew from the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, on June 19, 2020.  

On May 20, 2020, the New Mexico Lobos alum and incoming NFL rookie receiver disclosed he was recovered from COVID-19 after experiencing mild symptoms in March. Gandy-Golden was selected by the Washington Redskins in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. 

Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson tested positive for coronavirus, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported June 17, 2020. The former Alabama Crimson Tide star, and longtime Houston Texans standout, was said to be experiencing "cold-like symptoms." 

On March 17, 2020, the Brooklyn Nets announced that four of its players had tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Kevin Durant revealed he was one of the infected.

Like his father, Jamie Howard, Class of 2022 four-star prospect Walker Howard tested positive for the novel coronavirus, Louisiana's Acadiana Advocate reported. The younger Howard is a standout at St. Thomas More High School in Lafayette, Louisiana.  

Former Arkansas defensive standout Richard Richardson died of COVID-19-related complications, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson announced on April 10, 2020. Richardson, who played for the Razorbacks from 1979-1982, was 60.  

In an ESPN podcast on March 27, 2020, network NBA analyst Doris Burke revealed that she began exhibiting COVID-19 coronavirus symptoms on March 11, 2020, the same day the NBA suspended its season. She said she subsequently tested positive for the disease. 

 The Utah Jazz point guard tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus one day after teammate Rudy Gobert. 

The former Southern Miss linebacker, seen here pursuing a Nebraska running back in a 2013 game, learned he had the COVID-19 coronavirus following a March 2020 hospitalization, Reda told Mississippi's Clarion-Ledger.  

In an April 13, 2020 tweet, the UTEP senior fullback revealed he'd tested postive for COVID-19. He said he was "feeling better and expected to make a full recovery." 

The former two-sport star, who excelled in football and track at LSU before a 1982 stint with the NFL's Denver Broncos (pictured, at right), died March 27, 2020, of COVID-19-related complications. He was 59. 

The Los Angeles Sparks guard tested positive for COVID-19, she posted on Twitter on March 27, 2020. "All of us are united in our fight to stop this spread and keep everyone safe/healthy," she wrote. "I will do my part, and I hope you do too."

Zac Alley, the linebackers coach and co-special teams coordinator for Boise State, revealed on April 7, 2020. that he'd tested positive for the novel coronavirus, but that he was "feeling good now."  

The Boston Celtics guard revealed he'd tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus on March 19, 2020. About 10 days later, he tweeted that he was "Corona Free." 

Jim Edmonds, the retired MLB star, who played the bulk of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals, announced on Instagram on April 2, 2020, that he was symptom-free following a bout of pneumonia and a coronavirus diagnosis. 

The Detroit Pistons forward and former UNLV star tested positive for the novel coronavirus days after guarding Rudy Gobert in a March 7, 2020, game against the Utah Jazz. 

The former St. John's guard, who played in 72 games for the Red Storm from 1991-1994, died of coronavirus-related complications on March 23, 2020, in New York City, where he'd also served as a police officer.  He was 49. 

Wayne Reese Sr., a New Orleans high-school-football coaching legend, died April 2, 2020, of coronavirus-related complications. He was 74. His former pupils included retired NFL star Marshall Faulk; he'd led the program at McDonogh 35 (pictured) for the past 19 years. 

Seen in a 1991 match, the tennis pro turned coach and ESPN broadcaster said in a March 31, 2020, video posted to Twitter that he felt "100 percent" after testing positive for COVID-19, and experiencing mild symptoms.  

On March 28, 2020, the New York Knicks announced that team owner James Dolan had tested positive for the novel coronavirus. 

Pearson Jordan, an LSU track athlete from 1976-1979, died March 28, 2020, of complications related to the COVID-19 coronavirus, LSU's Tiger TV reported. He was 69. 

Coronavirus hasn't spared European sports leagues. On March 12, 2020, the Premiere League's Chelsea soccer club announced it was closing its facilities after one of its players, Callum Hudson-Odoi, tested positive for the novel coronavirus. 

On March 13, 2020, Mikel Arteta, manager of the Premiere League's Arsenal, tested positive for COVID-19. The news followed Callum Hudson-Odoi's diagnosis by a day; the soccer league subsequently suspended its season. 

Paulo Dybala of Juventus, a soccer club in Italy's Serie A league, tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus, it was announced on March 21, 2020. 

Per a March 17, 2020, team announcement, the Juventus midfielder tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The Juventus defender was the first member of his squad to test positive for coronavirus. His diagnosis was made public on March 11, 2020.