Shared humanity is the heart of the Olympics

THE picture of a group of giggly girls in leotards crowding around a legendary gymnast to pose for pictures at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo was significant on two fronts.

Firstly, the veteran gymnast who was being honoured by her younger sports-sisters was Uzbekistan's Oksana Chusovitina. At 46-years-old she is the oldest gymnastics competitor at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

None of her young fans who were taking selfies with her and posing for pressmen was even born when Oksana won the gold in Barcelona in 1992 as part of the former Soviet Union’s Unified Team, in the team event.

Yesterday, posing with Oksana were fellow competitors in the vault – Giulia Steingruber of Switzerland, Costa Rica's Luciana Alvarado, Israel's Lihie Raz and our own Farah Ann Abdul Hadi, which brings us to the second matter of significance.

Farah Ann, 27 and Lihie who is 10 years younger, were happily seated beside each other, arms placed around each other’s waist and getting along seemingly without a care.

The excitement of the Games and being in Oksana’s presence perhaps the only thing on their minds apart from the events ahead as the competition is far from over.

The scene may have been lost on the Malaysian viewers as Astro Arena had already cut to the Musashino Forest Sports Plaza to watch national shuttler Lee Zii Jia make quick work of Ukraine’s Artem Pochtarov.

However, for those who had the opportunity to watch it, the gesture by two sportswomen is an example to others that sports transcend all boundaries – including politics and xenophobia.

Contrast this with Algeria's Judo exponent Fethi Nourine, who withdrew from the competition fearing the draw may put him up against Israel's Tohar Butbul.

Malaysia and Israel do not have diplomatic ties. And the atrocities inflicted on the Palestinians is something that cannot be ignored.

The conflict in Gaza, which Malaysia has been actively opposed to, is compounded by the constant anti-Zionist, anti-Jew and anti-Israel rhetoric from politicians, NGOs, and regular Malaysians.

However, for Farah Ann and Lihie these were perhaps worries for another day.

There is a time and place for everything, and sports is a great unifier – or at least a reminder of our shared humanity.

For this Malaysian woman and Israeli girl what was important was to celebrate the sport and their fellow sportsmen, while honouring a legend who had also inspired them to become faster, higher, and stronger.

That Olympic motto has been expanded to include “together” debuting at the Tokyo Games this year.

It is timely as it illustrates the strange physically distanced days, we are living in following the Covid-19 pandemic, which also saw the Games being postponed by a year and athletes competing in near empty arenas. But it is also a much-needed reminder of the common quest to unite an increasingly polarised world.

Farah Ann and Lihie may be longshots for a medal but what they may have achieved for their fellow countrymen through their spontaneous gesture of sisterhood and sportsmanship could be more valuable – a little less xenophobia and a little more understanding. – The Vibes July 26, 2021