IOC slams ‘unacceptable’ Daily Beast Olympic Grindr article, says journalist has been sent home
By Will Stroude
The Daily Beast article on Olympians using Grindr that was widely criticised for publishing potentially identifiable information about closeted athletes was condemned once again this weekend – this time by the International Olympic Committee.
Describing the article, originally entitled ‘I Got Three Grindr Dates in an Hour in the Olympic Village”, as “simply unacceptable”, the committee also said that Hines had been sent home by the Daily Beast.
“We understand the organisation concerned recalled the journalist after complaints and withdrew the story”, a spokesperson for the IOC told Outsports.
“This kind of reporting is simply unacceptable,” they added.
The Daily Beast initially responded to complaints about the article by taking out athletes’ identifiable information and issuing an editor’s note that suggested those who were offended had “interpreted the piece differently”. Shortly after, they withdrew the article entirely and issued an apology.
It’s still not been confirmed whether Hines has left Rio or not. According to reports, no comment has been made by the Daily Beast about Nico Hines’ status, in light of the article.
It could not be immediately confirmed if Hines is still in Rio. However, his last story on the Daily Beast’s website was Aug. 9, two days before his story about Olympics sex was posted. He also has not tweeted since Aug. 10, a day before the story appeared.
The Daily Beast have not responded to a request for comment.
Meanwhile, out, Tongan Olympic swimmer Amini Fonua responded to the article with an impassioned speech about LGBT safety on Twitter, and told the Daily Beast to kiss his ass in a not-so-subtle Instagram post.
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