Apology Deemed 'Futile' by Family Involved in Gymnastics Racism Controversy

A black girl who was not given a medal at a gymnastics event in Ireland has criticized the apology she received, calling it "useless." The incident occurred at a GymStart event in Dublin in March 2022, when the girl did not receive a participation medal like the other children. A video of the incident was recently shared online, exposing the alleged racist treatment. The mother of the girl said watching the incident was "horrendous," and she emailed the governing body the following day hoping for an apology. However, it took 18 months for Gymnastics Ireland to publicly apologize, which the mother deemed insincere. The judge at the event later apologized to the family, claiming it was a mistake and that she would never be racist. The family believes their daughter was subjected to racism and has requested anonymity due to fears of racist abuse. They also expressed disappointment with the reaction of sports governing bodies, accusing them of trying to cover up the incident. The family would like to see a change in policy from Ireland's Department of Sport to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. Gymnastics Ireland acknowledged that it took too long to apologize and admitted their response lacked empathy. They also stated that this was the first racism complaint they had received and claimed to have learned from the incident. After the incident gained attention, the family received a video of support from Simone Biles, which inspired the girl to continue pursuing gymnastics.