KUALA LUMPUR: An Olympic swimmer known for her glamour outside the pool has been expelled from the Olympic Village after being accused of distracting other competitors with her skimpy clothing and socialising with other athletes.
Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso was asked to leave after officials claimed her behaviour created an "inappropriate atmosphere," The Daily Mail reported.
The striking 20-year-old, who was eliminated on the first day of competition, was seen wearing her own choice of outfits instead of the official team kit provided by Paraguayan officials. She was also spotted socialising with other athletes, allegedly distracting her teammates who were still competing.
Alonso checked into a hotel in Paris and visited high-end boutiques and restaurants, sharing photos with her 500,000 social media followers. The Paraguayan Olympic Committee decided to remove her from the athletes' village after receiving reports of her distracting behaviour.
Typically, all athletes stay until the end of the Olympics to participate in the closing ceremony and subsequent celebrations in the host city. The decision to send her away early reflects the dissatisfaction of the Paraguayan Olympic Committee, and she was instructed to stay in a hotel rather than in the shared accommodation in the athletes' village.
In a statement, Paraguayan Olympic chief Larissa Schaerer said, "Her presence is creating an inappropriate atmosphere within Team Paraguay. We thank her for proceeding as instructed, as it was of her own free will that she did not spend the night in the Athletes' Village."
During her stay in Paris, Alonso visited Euro Disney, posing with Mickey Mouse ears in front of the Magic Kingdom castle. After failing to reach the semi-finals in the butterfly heats, Alonso announced her retirement from the sport and returned to the US, where she is studying at a university in Texas.
While in Paris, Alonso stayed at the upscale Hotel Pastel, near the Arc de Triomphe, and visited many of Paris's popular designer boutiques and museums. She visited the renowned patisserie Ladurée and shared a photo of its famous macarons.
Luana also enjoyed some luxury shopping at the Yves Saint Laurent flagship store on the Champs-Élysées and the nearby Louis Vuitton headquarters. While still in Paris for the Olympics, she watched her tennis idols at Roland Garros, attending matches featuring Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, and Carlos Alcaraz.
Other photos on her Instagram show her in front of the Eiffel Tower and the Hôtel des Invalides museum, which houses the tomb of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.
Alonso exited the Olympics after finishing sixth in the 100m butterfly event. She promptly announced her retirement from the sport, without first notifying her Olympic officials, telling her social media followers that she had made the decision before travelling to France.
The swimmer has not commented on her sudden departure from Paris, but a photo on her Instagram showed her approaching a border crossing in the US. After failing to qualify from her heat on July 27, Alonso announced: "It's official now! Swimming: thank you for allowing me to dream. You taught me to fight, to try, perseverance, sacrifice, discipline, and much more. I gave you part of my life, and I wouldn't change it for anything in the world because I had the best experiences, made friends from other countries that I will always carry in my heart, and had unique opportunities. It's not goodbye. It's 'see you soon'."
Alonso was one of the youngest swimmers to compete in the Olympics when she participated in the 2016 Tokyo Games.