The Olympics is not always just a place for sporting brilliance but also for defiance against political hardship. Jesse Owens triumphs in 1936 in front of Adolf Hitler the greatest example and Ethiopia's Feyisa Lilesa is the latest athlete to use The Games as a platform to protest.
Lilesa grabbed his country's second silver of the Olympics when he crossed the line for the men's marathon in second place but it might not have been as pleasing to some people back home as you might have thought as he staged a sign of protest against the government as he finished the race.
The crossed arms above the head is a gesture made by the Oromo people who have recently suffered brutality from police following protests against the government. Lilesa, who is from Oromia, described that he could be arrested or killed if he returned to his country:
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"If not kill me, they will put me in prison. I have not decided yet, but maybe I will move to another country."
The runner explained at a press conference after the race, where he repeated the symbol, exactly what it means and why he is standing by the protests:
"The Ethiopian government are killing the Oromo people and taking their land and resources so the Oromo people are protesting and I support the protest as I am Oromo.
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"The Ethiopian government is killing my people so I stand with all protests anywhere as Oromo is my tribe. My relatives are in prison and if they talk about democratic rights they are killed. I raised my hands to support with the Oromo protest."
Rule 50 of the Olympic charter bans political protest and the IOC are looking into the incident. The most famous previous incident was in 1968 games when Tommie Smith and John Carlos were stripped of their titles after the pair did a black power salute on the podium.
(Via BBC)
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