CV NEWS FEED // Despite the Paris Olympics’ blasphemous opening ceremony and restrictions on religious freedom, Olympic athletes continue to publicly celebrate their Christian faith.
Catholic Herald UK highlighted some of the Christian athletes at the Olympics, who are competing in swimming, diving, surfing, and skating.
British swimmer Adam Peaty lost his Olympic title by 0.02 seconds, but when he was interviewed by BBC’s Sharron Davies, he was smiling.
Peaty told Davies, “I’m a very religious man. I asked God just to show my heart, and this is my heart. I couldn’t have done more.”
Another British athlete, Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix, took the bronze medal in diving in the 3-meter springboard synchro with her teammate Lois Toulson. The 19-year-old Spendolini-Siriex said, “I give glory to God and I have grown so much as a person not just alongside her but as an athlete. I’m so happy.”
CatholicVote previously reported on Brazilian bronze medalist Rayssa Leal, who used sign language to tell audiences that Jesus “is the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” while her fellow Brazilian Gabriel Medina was barred from using his surfboard with a painting of Christ the Redeemer.
However, during Medina’s competition, a French photographer captured an image of him that “makes it look like Medina is levitating, standing upright above the crest of the waves while pointing to the sky,” the Catholic Herald explains.
Medina said the pose referred to Phillippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
The Catholic Herald explained that “there is a strong Jesus-walking-on-water vibe, with Medina himself looking authentically Messianic, certainly a lot more than the lady in the Last Supper parody did.”
