An Italian sports event slammed for preventing African athletes from competing in a marathon

Scheduled for May 3rd, 4th and 5th, the Triestete Running Festival is making headlines in Italy, after its organizers refused to let African athletes register for its half marathon. Accused of racism, the sports event’s organizers said that they have «excluded African athletes to avoid their exploitation».

Speaking to Italian newspaper La Repubblica, organizers said that these measures were taken to make sure that African athletes are «not underpaid», compared to other runners.

Commenting on the decision of Triestete Running Festival, Italian politician and Democratic Party’s MP Isabella De Monte said that what happened was «an undignified» act.

According to her, it is not up to the festival’s organizers to decide on the situation of African athletes, because «there are authorities that are entitled to deal with these issues». «These athletes were prevented from competing because they come from Africa», she concluded.