'She is a world-class person': Taoiseach Simon Harris condemns vile online abuse of relay star Rhasidat Adeleke
The mother of Ireland sprint hero Rhasidat Adeleke paid an emotional tribute to her ‘little girl’ after it emerged that the medal-winning athlete was subjected to vile online abuse.
Taoiseach Simon Harris also backed the 21-year-old triple European medal winner last night, calling her online taunters ‘cowards’.
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Ms Adeleke, who returned to her Texas base after the championships this week, was left extremely upset over comments posted online following the World Athletics Relays last month, according to her coach, Edrick Floreál.
Ireland’s Chris O’Donnell, Rhasidat Adeleke, Sharlene Mawdsley and Tom Barr celebrate winning gold. Pic: INPHO/Morgan Treacy
The track hero’s mother Adewumi Ademola told the Irish Mail on Sunday yesterday: ‘It’s too much for her. She’s just a little girl. I don’t know. It’s not good for her. It’s really awful.’
Ms Ademola, who is a regular pillar of support at her daughter’s races, added that she herself was ‘so low, because she’s so far away’.
Rhasidat Adeleke. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
‘I don’t want anything to happen to her. There’s no one with her. I just want to see that she’s OK.’ she said her message to her superstar daughter is to ‘look forward to the positivity, not the negativity’.
In an interview on Q102’s Weekend Sports Breakfast, Mr Floreál, who has coached Ms Adeleke since her move to University of Texas in 2021, said the online abuse had ‘really affected her, that her own people said negative things about her being an Irishwoman or not.
Rhasidat Adeleke. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
‘I think that’s probably the most pain I’ve seen her have. She was really in a dark place when she read those things on the internet.
‘She doesn’t cry ever, so when she cries it’s like, “Oh my God”, so that bothered her more than I ever thought and I just let her handle it.
‘I told her: “This is part of the deal, being who you are, attracting the attention you are attracting, that’s part of the deal, it comes with the territory, you can’t have one without the other and you’re going to have to accept it for what it is and deal with it and continue to train and perform.”
Taoiseach Simon Harris. Pic: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images
‘That’s probably the worst I’ve seen her as far as really feeling down on herself because of those things that were said on the internet,’ he said.
The Taoiseach rowed in behind the sprinter yesterday, posting on X: ‘Rhasidat Adeleke is not only a world-class champion, she is a world-class person. You have inspired a nation this week, especially young girls & boys. You are class, so please do not let online cowards bring you down. ‘You are Ireland and Ireland could not be more proud of you.’
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Rhasidat Adeleke. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
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