Maldives men's volleyball team for the Doha Asiad was relocated outside the Athletes' Village for chicken pox, DAGOC (Doha Asian Games Organizing Committee) said on Wednesday.

Abdulwahab Almussleh, DAGOC's program manager for health care and doping control, said the Maldives athlete had attended the Village's Polyclinic with skin lesions last Friday and was later diagnosed with chicken pox.

"The patient was admitted to hospital for further examination and isolation," he told DAGOC's daily briefing, adding that the athlete had been affected by the communicable disease for three days before being diagnosed.

Almussleh said that the other players of the 16-member volleyball team were screened and half were found to be immune due to be previously affected by the disease. The others are considered to be at risk at present.

DAGOC decided to isolate the team members at risk but a Maldives NOC official requested that the team be kept together and this was agreed. The entire team is now on anti-viral medication.

The Asian Volleyball Confederation ordered another examination of team members considered to be still at risk, which was conducted on Nov. 28. At least one but probably two athletes were found to be affected by the disease.

"Two athletes have skin lesions and these two athletes should not be competing," Almussleh added. "The two patients have been shifted to Hamad Hospital for further examination and isolation. One athlete has been confirmed to have chicken pox and the other has high probability of being infected."

Almussleh told that OCA (Olympic Council of Asia) medical experts would not prevent the team from competing. Maldives quit their match against Chinese Taipei on Tuesday due to the chicken pox incident.