Carli Lloyd, a superstar on the United States women’s national soccer team, recently gave an explanation for her decision not to kneel before the bronze medal game in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This decision is a break from the standard practice of athletes protesting racism by kneeling during athletic events.
Lloyd made an appearance on the CBS Sports program “Kickin’ It” and discussed the reasoning for her decision to not kneel during the national anthem. She stated that over time, kneeling had evolved into more of a symbolic act rather than an action that produced tangible consequences.
She highlighted that she believed kneeling had lost its meaning and stressed her support for change that could be enacted. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the Olympics that were originally slated to take place in 2020 have been moved to 2021. The event took place more than a year after George Floyd passed away.
Lloyd specified that the moment she made the decision to not kneel was ten seconds before the game started, and not during the playing of the national anthem. She pointed out that standing was more about participating in the game than it was about making a political statement.
She clarified that it wasn’t intended as a protest and that it was simply a matter of choosing to stand instead of kneeling, especially considering that it was her last world championship game. There was not a particular meaning or train of thought associated with it.
Lloyd gave a favorable response when she was asked if she would do it the same way again. Her response indicated that people could overanalyze activities of this nature. She had no intention of making a political statement with her decision because she was intent on performing well in the competition and winning a medal.