English translation of an archived publication. The roles, rules and references cited reflect its original publication date.
At the beginning of the month, the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) took a strong stance, deciding not to sanction American athletes who wished to protest respectfully against racism at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Athletes’ right to defend racial and social justice continues the pursuit of the values of equality that characterise Team USA and the Olympic and Paralympic movements.
With this in mind, the USOPC has asked the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee to review their guidelines and thus allow peaceful actions in defence of human rights and racial and social justice to take place.
Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter states that “No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas.”
The IOC is nevertheless reported to have indicated that it was willing to soften its position.
A story to follow, then...
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