Team GB weightlifter Emily Campbell lends support to trans competitor Laurel Hubbard
“Nobody has broken any rules, everybody stuck to them and qualified fairly."
Words: Jamie Tabberer; pictures: Instagram/@teamGB/RNZ
Team GB weightlifter Emily Campbell has lent her support to competitor Laurel Hubbard, who is set to compete at the Olympic Games in Tokyo later this month.
Hubbard has also received support from Australian rival Charisma Amoe-Tarrant (“I just wish her well,” she recently told The Australian) and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
“You can’t afford to let distractions get to you”
Speaking to The Mirror about Hubbard’s historic participation at Tokyo 2020, Campbell [below] said: “Nobody has broken any rules, everybody stuck to them and qualified fairly.
“You just have to compete against the girls who are out there. You can’t afford to let distractions get to you”.
Campbell, who has been tipped as a possible medal contender in Tokyo, added: “I’m looking at it in a positive way. We’ve fought for so long for people to enjoy weightlifting and now you’re going to get some light on the sport.
View this post on Instagram
“I know the Olympics is probably the only time people do switch the weightlifting on because you end up watching random sports.”
Campbell’s comments follow the International Olympic Committee backing New Zealand’s selection of Hubbard over the weekend.
On Saturday 17 July, IOC President Thomas Back said at a news conference: “The rules for qualification have been established by the International Weightlifting Federation before the qualifications started.
“These rules apply, and you cannot change rules during ongoing competitions.”
The Tokyo Olympics take place from Friday 23 July 2021 – Sunday 8 August 2021.
The Attitude Body Issue is out now.
Subscribe in print and get your first three issues for just £1 each, or digitally for just over £1.50 per issue.
