When Sasson then stretched out his hand to the Egyptian, Shehaby refused to take it and turned away, shaking his head.
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These Olympians who have been chosen to represent their countries are faced with the hard decision to either remain neutral and risk appearing traitorous to their fans at home, or take the route that El Shehaby has and risk their reputation for seeming unsportsmanlike.
El Shehaby was summoned by the Egyptian Olympic Committee to speak at a hearing as it began to investigate the incident.
The judo incident is not, unfortunately, an isolated display of anti-Israeli sentiment at the games.
I’d imagine he was angered by the disrespect, but Sasson is at least mature enough to know the Olympics aren’t the time to throw a tantrum. One Egyptian television commentator said El Shehaby would be seen as a “traitor” by other Egyptians if he even fought.
The 32-year-old had been reportedly pressured by his fans and followers on social media not to not compete in the match against the Israeli as it would shame Islam.
However, activists who support the Boycott Divestment and Sanction (BDS) movement hailed El Shehaby a “hero”. He said there was no obligation to shake hands, but to bow is mandatory.
Egypt’s Islam el-Shehaby, in blue, declines to shake hands with Israel’s Or Sasson after losing during the men’s over 100-kg judo competition in Rio on Friday. Gerbi defeated Miku Tashiro of Japan for Israel’s first Olympic medal since the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
It was an “unacceptable” and “unfortunate” move, International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said. He attempted to shake his opponents hands and when he was refused, he just carried on normally.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Sasson in a phone call on Saturday night that: “Every boy and girl saw not only a great athlete but a man with values”. “There’s absolutely no excuse for it”, a spokesman said. Many blamed him for embarrassing the country, although some felt sympathy for El Shehaby, saying he was put under a lot of pressure.
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“The delegation doesn’t allow mixing politics with sports”.
