Michael Knowles call out U.S. Olympic gold medalist Sunisa Lee following a controversial tweet she posted about winning “for ourselves.”
The full tweet from Wednesday said, “never been prouder to be part of such an amazing team with an amazing group of girls. we stepped up when we needed to and did this for ourselves. we do not owe anyone a gold medal, we are WINNERS in our hearts.”
First, Simon Biles drops out. The move was controversial, citing mental health rather than a physical injury. Now Lee says the medal was not for her country, but for “ourselves.”
The self-focus reeks in comparison with past generations of Olympians. While we applaud Lee’s performance, see may want to remember she represents more than 300 million Americans, not just a few “amazing girls” on her team.
The statement follows a concerning trend among numerous American Olympic athletes in 2021. Gwen Berry turned away from the American flag during the National Anthem after qualifying for the Games.
The U.S. women’s soccer team took a knee during the National Anthem before taking a 3-0 loss in the first round of Olympic competition.
The point? Olympians represent America, but many of them aren’t representing it well at the moment. People shouldn’t be surprised so many viewers are simply choosing to turn the Games off.
