Alex Morgan blasts critics of tea-sip celebration for 'double standard'
Alex Morgan sounded off on critics of her now-famous "tea-sipping" celebration, accusing them of holding her to a "double standard."
Speaking to the press on Friday ahead of the U.S. team's World Cup final match-up with the Netherlands, Morgan said, via ESPN, "I feel that there is some sort of double standard for females in sports, to feel like we have to be humble in our successes and have to celebrate, but not too much or in a limited fashion."
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She added, to drive the point home, "You see men celebrating all over the world in big tournaments, grabbing their sacks or whatever it is. And when I look at sipping a cup of tea, I am a little taken aback by the criticism."
Morgan's comments come a few days after teammate Megan Rapinoe similarly ripped critics who chided Morgan for celebrating. Said Rapinoe, “Wah, wah, wah. It’s like, we’re at the World Cup. What do you want us to do?"
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In case you missed it or maybe just want to re-live the glory of it all, here's Morgan's celebration that has people with no sense of humor all in a tizzy, from the U.S. team's 2-1 semifinal victory over England.
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Additionally, Morgan claimed that a big point of inspiration for the tea sip was Game of Thrones actress Sophie Turner, who has made a habit of occasionally closing out Instagram posts with "and that's the tea."
For fun, and to prove Morgan's point, here is an example of male athletes "grabbing their sacks," as Morgan puts it.
Oh, and here's Cristiano Ronaldo, the biggest soccer star on the planet, making one giant crotch grab/chop in celebration.
Anyway, Morgan isn't letting all the sound and fury distract her from the main objective: winning the World Cup again.
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Here's hoping the USWNT brings home another World Cup on Sunday and that Morgan has an even better celebration up her sleeve.
Marcus Gilmer is Mashable's Assistant Real-Times News Editor on the West Coast, reporting on breaking news from his location in San Francisco. An Alabama native, Marcus earned his BA from Birmingham-Southern College and his MFA in Communications from the University of New Orleans. Marcus has previously worked for Chicagoist, The A.V. Club, the Chicago Sun-Times and the San Francisco Chronicle.
