Team USA Fencers Wore Pink Masks to Protest Their Teammate Accused of Sexual Assault

In spite of numerous allegations of sexual assault, Team USA fencer Alen Hadzic (opens in new tab) made it to the Tokyo Olympics—but his teammates, frustrated with their affiliation with a man that six woman fencers had spoken out about, decided to take a stand. At their Friday match against Japan, three of Hadzic's fellow épée team members wore pink masks in a plain-sight protest against Hadzic, who was banned from the Olympic Village in light of the allegations but allowed to compete under the Team USA umbrella. (Hadzic denies the allegations, which are currently under investigation.)

BuzzFeed News—which initially reported on the shocking circumstances of Hadzic's journey to Tokyo (opens in new tab) in spite of the multiple female fencers who shared with the Olympic committee that they were "gravely concerned" about his potential behavior in Tokyo—confirmed (opens in new tab) with fencing sources that the pink masks were a protest against Hadzic and the predatory behavior of which he's accused. One fencer told (opens in new tab) BuzzFeed's Tasneem Nashrulla and Brianna Sacks: "They wanted to make a distinction between themselves that they didn't stand for sexual assault or abuse against women. These athletes wanted to have a voice where US Fencing and SafeSport failed."

In this photo from Friday, shared by former Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, Hadzic stands behind his teammates—Hadzic in a black face mask, the others in pink:

While Hadzic served as an épée alternate, meaning he was only going to compete if another teammate was sick or injured—which did not happen—the decision by USA Fencing to bring him to Tokyo and create a "safety plan" to keep him away from women and the Olympic Village was met with widespread horror. "The extra effort to protect Hadzic is yet another reminder of just how differently the rules are applied to a straight white man," wrote (opens in new tab) Andrew Lawrence in The Guardian.