Rio de Janeiro, Feb 18 (IANS): Rio Olympic Games organising committee has provided mosquito repellent to divers and team officials to prevent the Zika virus spreading before the upcoming FINA Diving World Cup, which is also the Rio 2016 test event.

According to Chinese diving team manager Zhou Jihong, the organising committee has provided repellent to teams and also introduced the information and raised awareness about Zika prevention on Wednesday. Besides, a day-by-day clean inside the venue will help to sweep away mosquitos, reports Xinhua.

The World Diving Cup will be staged at the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre from Friday to Wednesday (February 19-24). In total, 272 athletes from 49 countries and regions will compete for 88 spots in the Rio Olympic diving competition.

Meanwhile Brazil's Zika virus outbreak has made athletes and tourists afraid of being in the country. The Olympic host country has 1.5 million people infected by Zika since early 2015.

While it causes only mild flu-like symptoms in most people, scientists suspect when it strikes a pregnant woman, it can cause her baby to be born with microcephaly, or an abnormally small head.