Vigil for Roviel Detenamo, Feagaiga Stowers, Luniarra Sipaia and all young women denied their Olympic dreams

[FindTheTruth]

I'm lighting a candle and sending love to the young women denied their rightful place on the podium and excluded from world female sporting events. IOC board/Richard Budgett excluding these young women, their families, their communities, their countries, their trainers, supporters and future descendants. Time to honour these women.

Roviel Detenamo 18, Nauruan, 🔆 denied her first Olympics because a male took her qualifying slot. She should've been the 1st woman from her country to get to Olympics in 20 yrs.

Feagaiga Stowers, 20, Samoan, ❤️ Gold female in the 2019 Pacific Games, pushed to Silver by a male. Now not attending Olympics 2020. Won gold at Commonwealth 2018 games. This amazing women started lifting while living in a domestic violence shelter

Luniarra Sipaia, Samoan, 💐Silver female in the 2019 Pacific Games, pushed to Bronze by a male. Now not attending Olympics 2020

twitter.com/fairplaywomen/status/1419741768627724296

fairplayforwomen.com/women-are-losing-their-olympic-dreams/

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/1f46e2aa-f160-11eb-8f01-2c678acbb979?shareToken=9d0226dd0cb1461776b0674a8b299a60

This is a lovely idea. I will join you.

First reply on that thread.

Of course the tweeter has 'he/him' in his bio to show the world how compassionate he is

Feagaiga Stowers ❤️
From an interview with the Samoan Observer
“My S.V.S.G. family is always supporting me, especially mama Lina who has been there for me, cheering me on and helping me to achieve great things in life,” she said.

Mama Lina is the President of S.V.S.G., Siliniu Lina Chang.

“My sisters and brothers at the campus of hope are the ones that give me the confidence throughout my competitions,” she said.

“Every time I lift the bar, I imagine myself carrying all the weight of my brothers and sisters at the shelter. I imagine that I’m lifting all the difficulties and hardships they are carrying. I imagine that I’m doing that and proving to them we can be greater despite the bad experiences in life.”

The meaning of success to her is making a change for herself personally and motivating others to do the same.

Her potential was discovered when she was under the protection of the Samoa Victims Support Group (S.V.S.G.). She had been there as a survivor of a sexual crime when the President and Coach of the Samoa Weightlifting Federation, Tuaopepe Jerry Wallwork, discovered her when they visited to present a donation in 2013.

“Tuaopepe invited any of the girls who would want to join weightlifting,” she recalled. “Then me and the other girls volunteered.”

I’m sending sisterly love and goodwishes to these young sportswomen, and to all women cheated of their rightful opportunities.

We should all learn their names. Thanks for posting, OP

Sending love to Feagaiga Stowers, a grateful positive role model who honoured her 'Mama Lina' at the domestic violence shelter, who lifts up the people around her.

This quote xxxx “Every time I lift the bar, I imagine myself carrying all the weight of my brothers and sisters at the shelter. I imagine that I’m lifting all the difficulties and hardships they are carrying. I imagine that I’m doing that and proving to them we can be greater despite the bad experiences in life.”

Tania Edwards, Canada 🇨🇦 ✨ denied her right to be at the Olympic 2020 games and to be called an 'Olympian' for life (with OLY after her name) because a male took her place, because the IOC board/Richard chose 'rules' to include a male and exclude her.
archerycanada.ca/tania-edwards/

Brilliant thread @FindTheTruth, I'll join you.

Currently seething after reading this piece of shit article than the BBC calls journalism these days:

Laurel Hubbard: The reluctant history-maker at the centre of sport's transgender debate www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/57989022

I am assuming the IOC is getting an awful lot of flack, hence the 'we have a long way to go' and trying the fudge of, it will be sorted by science. It already bloody is sorted by science and the discipline is biology ffs

This is a lovely initiative to centre the magnificent women who had opportunities stolen from them, and I'm in.

I wonder why the international press keeps saying Hubbard is the first trans Olympic athlete?

Barrett, Quinn and the skateboarder have already competed.

This is a lovely idea for a thread but I'm so saddened and angry that we have reached this point.

Dear god. So furious. Just so, so, so furious.

Thank you for doing this.

I never imagined how simple and easy it would be to erase women. Just define them as nothing and done!

We're going backward at a rate of light years.

Solidarity with Roviel Detenamo.

She should have been on TV as an olympian today.

So fucking angry about all this.

Roviel wouldn't have been the first woman from Nauru to compete for 20 years, because there was a woman from Nauru competing a few days ago in a lighter weight category: Nancy Abouke.

100% here for this.

It's just bloody heartbreaking.

Made even worse by the fact it's becoming so common place if it's allowed to continue it's going to become a regular experience for any girl or woman that has sporting ambitions.

I now know her name, and I will make sure as many people as possible know the name of this woman who was denied her place. So angry.

Joining you in thinking of these women who've been cheated of their rightful place by gynophobic bigots, both those who allowed this to take place in their names and those in organisations like the IOC.