I did read article and understand that... but again... you allow discrimination against anyone they are coming for your rights next! Here in NC you can use your so called religious rights to discriminate against folks you THINK are gay and your business can refuse service to them based on your religious belief. How do you know someone is gay? Don’t we think those folks could also use this laws loophole to discriminate against blacks, women, or anyone they want and say it was because they THOUGHT these minorities were gay

Yes Dan I am person in article

Ignorant comment.... never raced for sex party but if your in then I’m in

the first race on the ITU WTS circuit this year will be in abu dhabi. what we'll see are women racing in garments that are an outward expression of their religion, and this will not only be allowed, but celebrated. meanwhile, someone wearing an expression of sexual preference - in solidarity with his or her discriminated status - is subject to a DQ.

the ITU is celebrated for its stand on gender equality. and on challenged athlete equality. but it just fumbled the ball on this one.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

alrighty. well, i am not gay. but i'm your brother on this one. i haven't been this angry in awhile.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Yep, sounds like enforcement of an existing rule to prevent political posturing at their events. Unless you're one of those that have to get your underwear wadded up about everything, there's not much to see here.

So you would be OK if someone wore a nazi, ku-klux-klan, jihad or homophobic flags? As I read it, this is not against gays but against showing political, racial or sexual symbols in ITU competition. And I am not comparing the nazi flag to the rainbow flag, it is just to show examples of what this law is forbidding. Why everyone is interpreting it is against gay rights is beyond my imagination. Unless, as I said in my first email, someone has clear ITU insight on this that prove the contrary.

Ni. Its the ITU kowtowing to the Abu Dhabi authorities in order to take their money. Simples.
And it sucks.

Thank you Dan... the hypocrisy is deafening.... this whole support of Middle East and that’s not an issue for them or Ironman because of money... so turn blind eye, is disgusting. Now I will do this in protest so if I’m DQ’d then maybe it will get attention on how ridiculous it is that ITU stepped into this issue

Those are racist symbols... the rainbow flag actually represents freedom, peace and love for EVERYONE, not just the gay community, so it embraces all people and is not offensive or racist in any way shape or form.

Why a women's triathlon kit is a religious manifestation goes well beyond where my imagination can fly to. There are women racing triathlon in the ITU circuit from, Catholic, Protestant, Taoist, Confucionist and Hinduist countries, as well as at the minimum, plus atheist and agnostic women racing from those or other countries as well. Is that kit an outward representation of all the above religions and non religions, or just some of them? I'd love to hear what holy writings from any religion talk about triathlon garment. It would be a great topic for a new thread.

In addition, Abu-Dhabi (same country than Dubai, Emirates) was the season opener a couple of years ago and nothing happened that I can recall.

let me expand your imagination. i've had a busy morning, trying to get to the bottom of how this rule got amended. mind, i've never heard of anyone getting DQd or warned because of any outward expression of religion on one's person.

what you're saying is, someone who races in an ITU race for the FCA (fellowship of christian athletes) should be DQd. you know there's a club called TRI4HIM. It's on their jerseys. want another half dozen examples? heck, you'll find them here on this forum. all on jerseys. all emblazoned on pop up tents at races.

terry davis said the prerace prayer before every wildflower triathlon. pretty much mandatory unless you were willing to miss the start. should USAT deny his sanction?

how far do you want to go with this? how many examples do you want before it becomes crystal fucking clear that this is only about the rainbow flag?

mind, the only part of any of this that's ever really bothered anyone is that everyone is obliged to participate in a particular religious observance prior to an event. and the ITU has never said a thing about that. and, that's okay with me, because if i was in egypt and the RD wanted to hold some sort of islamic observance prior to the race, fine. it's his race. i'm a visitor. i owe him my observance of his religious conviction. so, none of us in triathlon, since the beginning - and i've been a triathlete a decade before the ITU existed - have gotten our panties in a wad over individual expression.

just, let's not pretend that the outlawing of this one silent, singular, and rare, show of solidarity with a disenfranchised minority is simply on par with our sport's behavior toward other similar outward demonstrations of religion, minority status, or political conviction.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

See you all at Duathlon Nationals in April.... in full rainbow and Mohawk will be back. I now am racing in protest instead of representing people with cancer.... good job ITU and society for making gays a political issue. Cmon folks... what if we turned this around and heterosexual folks were the minority’s

Dan, if you decide to help bring attention to this then I would love to help in any way I can. Thank you for seeing US!

i'm just warming up.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

You don't owe anyone any participation in a religious observation prior to a race, I don't give a shit if you're racing in downtown Cairo, Jerusalem, anywhere. Any such event or observation should be quite clearly optional and never compulsory. People need to get politics, religion, and agendas out of sports, especially sports like "adult participation events" where there will be people of all backgrounds and convicitions. It only serves to cause issues. You either can't allow any or you have to allow them all. It's easiest if people would just focus on the task at hand.. racing. Or participating, whatever.

I can understand prohibiting carrying flags other than national flags and placing flags (other than national flags) or other words/images on uniforms, but if the ITU prohibits display of jewelry or tattoos with certain images or words that is going too far. The question is whether the current rule could lead to the latter.

i don't disagree with you. i just don't think this rises to the level of a lavender room food fight. i was at a gravel race last year and i saw a guy after the race with a MAGA hat. oh, the horror! then he and i had a great conversation, and we emerged friends (tho i don't share his political persuasion). i believe what you wrote: "easiest if people would just focus on the task at hand." there is way more that binds us in sport than separates us. best to focus on that, and to not stumble over idiosyncrasies.

which is why the ITU's rule change here causes us WAY more problems than it solves: it's a solution to a pretty much nonexistent problem. it simply highlights the fact our sport discriminates based on sexual preference in certain countries, and our solution to that is to memorialize in the rules the closeting of one's gay status.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Would love to see how they respond to the rainbow tattoo around my arm.... I have always told folks how inclusive triathlon is and that we welcome everyone, never thought my sport would become about discrimination. Who cares if a rainbow flag is run down the finish cute.... again it represents freedom and inclusion of ALL people, it’s not a political symbol or racist symbol. Why is it okay for our country flags to be displayed then? What if the American flag represents hatred to some folks due to our current political mess due to Frump?
Again... you allow discrimination against one person, they are coming for you next!

you realize this is done at the finish of almost every race? by the winner? including in the olympics?

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Being gay is not political.... heterosexuals with crazy religious views want it to be

I can buy that.. but then if I have a group of people that all race in kits and have warm up gear, t shirts, hats etc. that say "marriage=man+woman" as an example, then that's my prerogative and I would expect the same respect that I show my fellow athletes who I know are gay and want to display that. I know I wouldn't get that same courtesy, God knows why, but what's good for one is good for the other.

Our tie that binds is sport, I wish we'd all keep it that way. We're hung up on the fringe issues and ignoring major issues that affect us all, left, right, black, white, dem, gop, and we hate each other because the radicals are loud and obnoxious and suck everyone in to an all or nothing proposition.

Sigh.

The article is misleading and takes what the actual rule says above and beyond. Here is what the rule actually says:

“Avoid displaying any kind of demonstration of political, religious,
sexual orientation or racial propaganda;”

With “sexual orientation” recently added. Maybe you should do more research before posting this to the forum.

Why sexual orientation.... how is that political or offensive?

I can't say much about the technical details of various crazy ITU rulings, but to say anyone with a logo or symbol on their kit is 'weirdly obsessed' is, in my view, more than a huge stretch. People wear on their kits and bodies sponsor logos, corporate logos, club logos, team names/logos, national flags, military symbols, religious symbols, little pictures of kittens and flowers, the list goes on and on.

Are all of these athletes "obsessed"?
I think not.
And, sure, I can see the ITU banning on a case by case basis certain limited logos or symbols that clearly espouse hatred or violence or genocide, but to worry about little rainbow flags and similar things, that is just plain 'effing kooky.

Somehow, I smell corrupt russian influence in this BS ...
And those totalitarians ARE truly obsessed with (and profoundly frightened by) gay people. Especially that darling of ours, Putin ...

Greg @ dsw

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