The Olympic Games may be their one opportunity to meet others like them. They’re being robbed of those potentially life-altering experiences.
“Some of the greatest friends I’ve ever made have been from the Olympics, so that makes me sad from a friendship standpoint,” Buscis said. “Knowing that so many athletes are going to have to leave right after they’re done competing, it’s just unfortunate.” (Athletes are required to leave the Olympic Village 48 hours after their event ends or they’re eliminated.)
While social distancing measures are necessary, it still would’ve been nice to see organizers come up with virtual ways to induce camaraderie.
“If it’s really about preventing physical proximity, I would love to see the organizers compensate for the restrictions by having a specific and dedicated way to recognize LGBTQIA+ athletes and let them socialize, even virtually,” said Keuroghlian. “How great would that be for the people participating?”
With spectators and off-campus socializing banned, athletes will pretty much only be able to hang out with themselves — minimizing their exposure to the largely unvaccinated Japanese population.
Human behavior tells us there will be some socializing and sexualizing going on inside of the Olympic Village this year — it will just be done in secret.
Early in the pandemic, the NYC Health Department offered
guidelines on safe sex during Covid-19, instructing revelers to “keep it kinky” and “be creative with sexual positions and physical barriers, like walls, that allow sexual contact while preventing close face-to-face contact.”
The suggestions were a nod to reality: People will engage in sexual activities amidst a pandemic. It was the perfect example of a risk mitigation approach.
In other words, it’s everything Olympic organizers aren’t doing.
“At a certain point, there’s an element of autonomy and self-determination that you have to afford people,” Keuroghlian said.
Still, Buscis says every athlete probably knew this would be a different kind of Olympic Games. This year, it’s all about the competition.
“If you were to say, ‘Hey, you could compete in the Olympics or have sex,’ I guarantee you every athlete would say they would rather compete.” she said.
While that may be true, the approach doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing.
www.theguardian.com
www.businessinsider.com
