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The Limits of Celebrity Activism
The International Olympic Committee has announced strict new rules governing athlete protests for the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The governing body of the International Olympic Games announced new guidelines for athlete protests this week. The revised rules, which will impact the July 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, have explicitly forbidden “gestures of a political nature, like hand gestures or kneeling”.
These new guidelines stem from an increasing, and increasingly distracting and divisive, number of on-field and off-field protests.
“We stand firmly against the growing politicization of sport because only in this way can we accomplish our mission to unite the world in peaceful competition.” — Thomas Bach, I.O.C. president.
Laying out its reasoning for the ban, the International Olympic Committee issued an impassioned defense of sport as a unifying force and a statement of unwavering support for Olympic athletes- regardless of their nationality or belief-system.
“The majority of athletes feel it is very important that we respect each other as athletes.” — Kristy Coventry, IOC Commission chair