South Korean pistol champion no longer worried about Zika

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are seen inside Oxitec laboratory in Campinas, Brazil, February 2, 2016. REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker/File Photo

(Reuters) - South Korean pistol shooter Kim Jang-mi has declared she is no longer concerned by the Zika virus as she prepares to defend her gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Several athletes have already withdrawn from the Games citing concerns over Zika, a mosquito-borne virus that has been shown to attack fetal brain cells and cause microcephaly, a birth defect marked by small head size and underdeveloped brains.