This week, 16-year-old Brazilian skateboarder Rayssa Leal won a bronze medal in the women’s street skateboarding final on July 28, and she refused to be silent about her religious beliefs, using sign language to subtly share scripture during the competition.
Religious demonstrations are discouraged by Rule 50 of the International Olympic Committee charter which stresses the importance “that we keep the venues, the Olympic Village, and the podium neutral and free from any form of political, religious, or ethnic demonstrations.” But Leal refused to comply or be silent about her religious beliefs, instead using sign language to share scripture.
At one point during the competition, Leal smiled into the camera and signed John 14:6, a Bible verse that reads, “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
After the event, Leal explained the move.
“I did it because I do it in every competition,” Leal told the Brazilian media outlet UOL, according to the Catholic News Agency.
“For me it is important; I am Christian, I believe a lot in God,” she stated. “There I asked for strength and sent a message to everyone, that God really is the way, the truth, and the life.”
