{"id":435108,"date":"2020-06-10T04:23:04","date_gmt":"2020-06-10T11:23:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=435108"},"modified":"2024-10-28T11:34:37","modified_gmt":"2024-10-28T18:34:37","slug":"olympic-bosses-warn-athletes-that-they-face-a-ban-if-they-take-the-knee-in-peaceful-protest-over-injustice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/olympic-bosses-warn-athletes-that-they-face-a-ban-if-they-take-the-knee-in-peaceful-protest-over-injustice\/","title":{"rendered":"Olympic Bosses Warn Athletes That They Face A Ban If They Take The Knee In Peaceful Protest Over Injustice"},"content":{"rendered":"

The International Olympics Committee (IOC)<\/strong> is sticking to its threat to ban athletes at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in 2021 for taking a knee in peaceful solidarity with anti-racism movements.<\/p>\n

IOC bosses confirmed that their guidelines haven’t changed despite international law that defends the right of peaceful protest, despite such protests unfolding world wide and despite significant shifts in thinking at sports organisations such the NFL, FIFA and England’s FA in the wake of the brutal death of George Floyd under the knee of a white police officer now charged with murder.<\/p>\n

The crisis in the United States has led to protests across the world on an issue that played out in Olympic history back in 1936, when Jesse Owens<\/a> claimed four gold medals in the face of discrimination about to spill to World War and the Holocaust.<\/p>\n

The IOC’s confirmation followed an Open Letter addressed to it by Gwen Berry,<\/strong> the American hammer thrower, under the heading: “Sport, Politics, protest … and The Olympics” (see letter in full at the foot of this article).<\/p>\n

The Olympic Movement and member federations have long been criticised for being behind the times on many issues, including rights of athletes, the models through which vast revenues flowing from the business of the Games and related Olympic sports events are shared and structures of governance backed by constitutions that keep independent oversight at bay or cut it out altogether.<\/p>\n

Olympic officials published guidelines in January banning any protest at the Tokyo Games. Athletes face sanctions, including removal of medals and suspension from the Games, for “taking a knee, raising a fist or refusing to follow protocol at medal ceremonies”.<\/p>\n

Swimming’s Version Of Taking A Knee<\/h3>\n
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Mack Horton, left, keeps his distance to Sun Yang for the photo-op with bronze medallist Gabriele Detti after medals in the 400m free at world titles in Gwangju … podium protests followed after Sun Yang’s latest brush with anti-doping authorities – Photo Courtesy: Patrick B. Kraemer<\/p><\/div>\n

The latter followed podium protests by Australia’s Mack Horton<\/a> and Britain’s Duncan Scott<\/strong><\/a> at the World swimming championships last year in Gwangju. Under a giant event motto “Dive Into Peace”, Horton, after the 400m freestyle final, and then Scott, after the 200m freestyle final, staged peaceful podium protests by standing aside when it came to having their photo taken alongside Sun Yang, the Chinese swimmer towing a doping penalty and heading to a hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)<\/strong> but allowed to race on.<\/p>\n

FINA took less than 24 hours to impose bans on all three swimmers, Sun’s penalty for leaning into Scott and shouting at him while still on the podium as events were being broadcast to the world. The international federation’s action was widely criticised by coaches associations<\/a> around the world as well as scores of world-class swimmers, Adam Peaty, Cate Campbell, Sarah Sjostrom, Katie Ledecky <\/strong>and Katinka Hosszu<\/strong> among swimmers who lent their support to Horton and Scott.<\/p>\n

Sun Yang was subsequently suspended for eight years<\/a> when the CAS sided with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)<\/strong>, which had challenged a FINA Doping Panel decision to let the swimmer off with a caution<\/a> after he was involved in conflict with anti-doping test officers in September 2018. Even so, Sun kept the World titles over 200 and 400m freestyle, just as he kept Asian Games titles in 2014 just four months after testing positive for a banned substance and three months ahead of the forced imposition of a backdated three-month suspension that was never served. Sun awaits a decision in a last-stand appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal.<\/p>\n

Now, the IOC has confirmed that its “guidelines are still in place”, even as key member nations take a different route in\u00a0the current climate. In stark contrast to the IOC’s stance, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, who announced it would create an “athlete-led group” to challenge the organisation’s own rules, including the athletes’ rights to protest.<\/p>\n

The British Olympic Association (BOA) is travelling down a similar path as it considers support for its athletes’ rights to promote the Black Lives Matter movement. The BOA will discuss the issue, including the taking a knee, with athlete representatives before filtering the outcomes of talks back up the chain to the IOC.<\/p>\n

The International Paralympic Committee confirmed that it encourages athletes to “stand up for what they believe in” but noted that the same IOC rules and guidelines\u00a0stand.<\/p>\n

Athletes are allowed to express political opinions in official media settings or on social media accounts but the guidelines ban athlete protests on the field of play, at ceremonies or in the Olympic Village at the Games.<\/p>\n

The IOC says athletes who break the rules will be dealt with on a “case-by-case basis” and added that it “will not speculate on hypothetical cases 13 months before the Olympic Games”.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, athlete representatives have discussed the question of why IOC guidelines make no provision for penalising international federations and others when rulings from the likes of CAS and WADA against them but the athletes impacted by the decisions of the federation are forced to live with the consequences, including medals and status “stolen” and never to be returned.<\/p>\n

The IOC today issued a statement on racism and inclusion, saying that the latter was “in the DNA of the Olympic Games and the IOC as an organisation”. It cited founder Pierre de Coubertin but made no mention of the IOC’s embracing of the Hitler Games in Berlin 1936, where the stadiums and venues were soaked in swastikas and the story of Jesse Owens and Luz Long s<\/strong><\/a>hows how it was left to athletes to show the better way to the future.<\/p>\n

\"2028The IOC statement:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) condemns racism in the strongest terms.<\/em><\/p>\n

The IOC stands for non-discrimination as one of the founding pillars of the Olympic Movement, which is reflected in the Olympic Charter, Fundamental Principle 6:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Olympic Charter shall be secured without discrimination of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The Olympic Games are a very powerful global demonstration against racism and for inclusivity. They are a celebration of the unity of humankind in all our diversity. Athletes from all 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team all enjoy the same rights, respecting each other and with the same rules applying to everyone without any kind of discrimination. All these athletes live peacefully together in the Olympic Village, sharing their meals, their thoughts and their emotions. <\/em><\/p>\n

This is in the DNA of the Olympic Games and the IOC as an organisation. Our founder Pierre de Coubertin said: \u201cWe shall not have peace until the prejudices that now separate the different races are outlived. To attain this end, what better means is there than to bring the youth of all countries periodically together for amicable trials of muscular strength and agility?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The IOC Executive Board supports the initiative of the IOC Athletes\u2019 Commission to explore different ways of how Olympic athletes can express their support for the principles enshrined in the Olympic Charter, including at the time of the Olympic Games, and respecting the Olympic spirit.<\/em><\/p>\n

By participating in the Olympic Games, the athletes are proof of this principle of non-discrimination for any reason. Their respect for all their fellow athletes gives us a glimpse of how humankind as a whole could live together peacefully and respectfully.<\/em><\/p>\n

Taking a Knee – Taking a Stand<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Sport, Politics, Protest … and The Olympics” – A Open Letter From \u00a0Gwen Berry<\/span><\/h2>\n