Australian double-medalist swimmer Maddie Groves has shut down the selection for the Tokyo Olympics, denouncing the existence of “misogynistic perverts” in the sport.
The 26-year-old, silver medalist in the 200m butterfly and 4x100m butterfly at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, shared her shocking decision on Instagram late Thursday, as the selection process for the Games is set to begin. Olympic in July. Saturday in Adelaide.
“I hope this is a lesson to all the perverts who hate women in sports and those who lick their shoes,” she wrote in her post.
“You can no longer take advantage of young women and girls, shame their bodies or fear for their health, and then expect them to represent you so that you can earn your annual reward. It’s over!” she cries.
The swimmer gives no indication of the identity of the persons involved. Last November, she complained on Twitter that “someone who works in swimming makes me feel uncomfortable with the way they stare at my clothes”.
A few days later she denounced an “evil comment” made by an anonymous coach, who later apologized, “probably because the team psychiatrist asked her to do so.”
For his part, the head of the governing body for swimming in Australia, Keren Perkins, expressed his regret that the swimmer did not file a formal complaint.
“The truth is that all we know is what is on social media, she has not contacted Swimming Australia at any point, we have not been able to speak to her directly and talk about her concerns to understand this is happening,” he told the channel. Nine o’clock on Friday.
“Unfortunately, social media posts are not an acceptable complaint to us. We have to sit down with people and talk about it,” he added.
He continued, “We would really like to do that and we hope that Madi will come and talk to us if she thinks she can do it.”
Despite her withdrawal, Muddy Groves says she has no intention of ending her career, saying she is looking forward to “participating in other competitions later this year.”
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