US shot putter Raven Saunders triggered an investigation by the Olympic Committee with her arms crossed during the award ceremony. The gesture against oppression has a lot to do with its history.
The US shot putter Raven Saunders called the International Olympic Committee on the scene with a protest gesture during the medal ceremony. “We’ll look at the matter and then weigh up the next steps,” said IOC spokesman Mark Adams on Monday. The day before, Saunders, who won the silver medal, had formed an X over her head with her arms at the award ceremony. Saunders said that this is a symbol for all people who are oppressed.
The athlete, who is politically active and caused a stir with her Hulk mask during the competition in Tokyo, made public in early 2020 that she suffers from mental health problems. before the Tokyo Games, she confessed that a suicide attempt three years ago had prompted herself to seek psychiatric treatment. At that time she was diagnosed with depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress symptoms.
Therapy and family helped
Saunders, who finished fifth at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, then retired for two years and got the disease under control with the help of her family and therapy. She also changed her diet. The 25-year-old, who started her sports career on the Mississippi university team and has been nicknamed the Hulk since childhood, grew up in the southern United States, which was not easy for her: “I was young, black and lesbian. I really felt like that there is no way out for me. “
She returned in early 2020 and competed again. Since then, she has been speaking openly about this phase in her life: “I wanted to be the one to say something, possibly to prevent someone from going that route. Or to let someone know, ‘Hey, you are not alone,'” says Saunders . “My goal is simply to save as many lives as possible.”
It remains to be seen whether the gesture will actually be punished during the award ceremony. In any case, she does not have to fear any sanctions from her association. The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said it believed Saunders’ gesture was “respectful of her opponents” and “does not violate our demonstration rules”.
IOC wants to talk to the US association
The IOC wants to talk about this with the US association and also with World Athletics, the athletics umbrella organization, as Adams said. For a long time, political actions by athletes in the vicinity of the games were forbidden. For the summer games in Tokyo, the IOC now allowed athletes to express themselves on social networks and before the start of a competition – this made it possible, for example, to kneel before games.
After the start of an event and also at award ceremonies, however, actions remained prohibited. That is also the wish of the athletes, said spokesman Adams with reference to a survey of athletes.
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
