Maddie Groves, Australian swimmer, denounces harassment in sports and renounces the Olympics
Maddie Groves in 2014. AP - Kirsty Wigglesworth
Text by: RFI Follow
3 min
Maddie Groves, double silver medalist in the 200m butterfly and 4x100m relay at the Rio Olympics, has decided to slam the door just a few days before the selections for the Tokyo Olympics which begin this Saturday, June 12 in Adelaide.
The president of the Australian Swimming Federation, for his part, takes the matter very seriously, but has so far failed to speak with the swimmer.
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From our correspondent in Sidney
,
Grégory Plesse
Maddie Groves, one of Australia's top medal hopefuls, will ultimately miss out on the Tokyo Olympics.
The 26-year-old swimmer announced on her Instagram account.
With her decision, she wishes to give "
a lesson to misogynistic perverts and to those who lick their boots
".
Let this be a lesson to all misogynistic perverts in sport and their boot lickers - You can no longer exploit young women and girls, body shame or medically gaslight them and then expect them to represent you so you can earn your annual bonus.
Time's UP https://t.co/XMQCRPjNzK
- Maddie Groves (@MaddieGroves_) June 9, 2021
Denouncing without naming them individuals who "
exploit young women, make them feel ashamed of their body or fear for their health
", Maddie Groves had already denounced this type of behavior a few months ago.
The president of the Australian Swimming Federation, for his part, assured that tackling harassment was his number one priority.
He also called on the swimmer to give him more details.
Invitation remained unanswered for the moment.
In a new message on Instagram, the latter explains today wanting to break the law of silence, which according to her reigns in the world of swimming in Australia.
And adds, "
if opening this discussion makes it possible to avoid, even if only to one young girl, being told to lose weight or to go on a diet, my non-participation in the Olympics will have been worth it
" .
If we do not see her in Tokyo, Maddie Groves is not done with swimming on the other hand.
She promises she'll be back, for other competitions
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