Anti-Bolsonaro outburst sparks free speech debate in Brazilian sport

Welcome back to the Brazil Sports newsletter. This week, allegations of political censorship in Brazilian volleyball, as one athlete has the book thrown at her for criticizing President Bolsonaro. And, a legal victory for the families of the victims of a harrowing 2016 air disaster. That, and much more.

Political censorship in volleyball?

The matter of athletes’ right to express political opinions has taken center stage in Brazil this week, after sports justice prosecutors issued a complaint against beach volleyball player Carol Solberg, who criticized Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro during a live TV interview in mid-September.

What happened? After winning a bronze medal in a beach volleyball event in Rio de Janeiro, Carol was interviewed live on television alongside her playing partner, Talita. At the end of the interview, she took the microphone and said: “just so I don’t forget, Bolsonaro out!”

Hot water. Immediately after the incident, the Brazilian Volleyball Confederation (CVB) renounced the player’s comments, saying they were “not in line with the ethical attitude athletes should adopt.” Furthermore, the CBV promised to “take all necessary measures so that incidents such as this, which denigrate the image of the sport, will not happen again.”

Carol’s explanation. “This ‘Bolsonaro Out!’ has been repressed here in my throat. To see this government acting in this form, with the Pantanal burning, 140,000 deaths, and the way we are facing this pandemic. This cry has been repressed, and I feel that as an athlete...