Weighing In on Rule 50

(ATR) Australian athletes are overwhelmingly against personal or political protests during Olympic competition or on the medal podium.

More than 80 percent of 496 respondents to a survey by the Australian Olympic Committee Athletes' Commission believe such protests "would detract from the performance or experience of athletes".

But the survey of Olympians and Tokyo 2020 aspirants found about 60 percent believe that under some circumstances, athletes should be able to express themselves at the Olympic Games.

While 40.93 percent felt the Games were not a place for athletes to publicly express views, 39.91 percent believe in self-expression depending on the circumstances and 19.16 percent believe in self-expression in any circumstances.

AOC Athletes’ Commission chair Steve Hooker noted a clear trend that showed a higher proportion of present-day athletes believe that the Games are a platform for self-expression when compared with Olympians from earlier eras.

"While just over 40 percent of athletes more broadly felt there was no place for self-expression or protest at the Games, if you look at athletes from the 2010’s, that figure of those against falls away to just 19 percent.

"Nevertheless, the majority [of] that younger group felt opportunities in social media and media conferences were preferable to protest on the field of play or Olympic podium," Hooker said.

The survey was prompted by an IOC Athletes’ Commission request for feedback that is part of a future review into Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter, which states "No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas".

A number of athletes and advocacy groups are calling for the IOC to loosen or abolish Rule 50. The IOC in January released guidelines for athletes going to Tokyo 2020, saying that they could express their opinions at press conferences and on social media but that political gestures such as kneeling on the podium were not allowed.

The issue has moved to the front burner with the global support of the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of George Floyd’s death while in the custody of Minneapolis police in May.

Many other sports organizations are allowing athletes to show on-field support of Black Lives Matter and the anti-racism movement, including domestic sport competitions in Australia.

Hooker says the AOC Athletes’ Commission has made a number of recommendations supporting alternatives to protest on the field of play.

As for the minority who support the right to protest anywhere, Hooker says "we have also recommended consideration be given about how an athlete can receive guidance, counselling and support if they do breach" Rule 50.

The AOC says this is the first survey on this subject to be released globally.

Click here to view the survey results.

Written by Gerard Farek

For general comments or questions,click here.

Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.