Gymnastics Ireland issued an apology after a video went viral showing a Black girl being shunned at a medal ceremony. According to Sky News, the incident occurred last year during a Gymstart event in Dublin.
The Black gymnast is seen in the video with other children lining up to get medals. However, the official awarding the awards to the children ignores the Black gymnast. The video has subsequently received over a million views on social media. Olympic champion Simone Biles also spoke out against the event, claiming it “broke her heart.”
Biles also stated that the Black gymnast’s family contacted her and that she sent the athlete a video message. “There is no room for racism in any sport or at all,” Biles wrote on social media.
The girl’s mother said in an initial interview with the Irish Independent on Sunday that officials had yet to apologize to them. She further stated that the incident had been reported to the Gymnastics Ethics Foundation in Switzerland. Race, according to the girl’s relatives, was also a part in the occurrence.
“We are often the only black family at gymnastics events and this has been very hurtful for us,” the girl’s mother said. “Now eight million people have seen the video. From Pakistan to Ethiopia they can see this was wrong but Gymnastics Ireland still can’t accept it and say sorry.”
“What happened on the day should not have happened and for that we are deeply sorry,” Gymnastics Ireland said in a statement. The organization also said it had asked an independent expert to look into its policies and procedures and some recommendations have been tabled to ensure an incident of such nature “does not ever happen again”, Sky News reported.
“We would also like to engage with the gymnast’s family and Sport Against Racism Ireland to listen to any suggestions they have as to how our procedures can be improved in this regard,” Gymnastics Ireland stated. The organization also said it “condemns any form of racism whatsoever.”
Gymnastics Ireland said the official who presented the medals to the children “expressed deep regret for what they described as an honest error.”