Smilla Kolbe speaks out against racist insults at the European Athletics Championships

Smilla Kolbe, 24, was pleased with a lot of support during the European Athletics Championships: She had improved her personal best in the preliminary run and ran the fastest time on the middle distance that a German had achieved since 1990. However, because her teammates were sometimes exposed to racist insults, Kolbe made it clear in the ZDF interview how close these derailments affected her.

“I read so many comments and I’m really happy about all the support,” said the runner, who would like to “say one more thing” after the sporting part of the conversation. »Nevertheless, I see some crass comments in the comment columns from some athletes. We represent Germany here, and I expect a little more respect.

Kolbe saw herself as protected from hate comments primarily because of her skin color: “I’m extremely happy that so many people support me. But I don’t want to imagine what it would be like if I wasn’t as white as I am.”

Previously, Kolbe had finished sixth in her semi-final, missing the final run on Friday evening by just two hundredths of a second, but was still happy with her second-fastest time in her career. However, the sporting aspects quickly faded into the background anyway.

Mabry thanks you for the words

Shot putter Yemisi Mabry, who won bronze at the start of the week, responded to Kolbe's appeal via Instagram. In her story, Mabry shared some hate comments she had received on her posts alongside Kolbe's interview. Mabry, the daughter of a Nigerian and a German, posted the word “Thank you” next to a heart emoji patched up with bandages.

Kolbe did not name any specific teammates who were also affected by the hate comments. »You can see that in many posts. That's why I say no more. So I also want to focus on the positive. I just wanted to get rid of it because it’s extremely important to me.”