Ethiopian swimmer mocked for 'dad bod' receiving love and hate online
Ethiopia's Olympic swimmer, Robel Kiros Habte, is getting lots of love and hate on social media after splashing his way through the 100-meter freestyle heats in Rio.
Despite being less-than-chiselled and finishing 59th out of 59 competitors (finishing an entire 17 seconds behind number one), the man who the media have dubbed "Robel the Whale" was happy as hell to be there. But despite his cult-like status among fans, he's been drenched with criticism.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
The university student was stoked after his not-so-stellar swim. He told Reuters, "I am so happy because it is my first competition in the Olympics. So thanks for God."
You May Also Like
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Ethiopia is traditionally associated with Olympic success in land-based events, rather than in the pool, a fact that had Habte looking to represent his country in a different way. "I wanted to do something different for my country, that's why I chose swimming," he said.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
"Everybody, every day you wake up in Ethiopia, you run. Not swimming. But I didn't want to run, I wanted to be a swimmer … It didn't matter where I finished," he added.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Habte told the Daily Mail that although the 'dad bod' comments were hurtful, his current weight is due to recovering from a car accident and he'll be back in shape in time for the World Championships in Canada.
"It has been difficult," he said, "They have used dirty language against me and called me fat and a big man and a whale … maybe after one week I can go back to the internet."
"I was not surprised that I finished far behind and last. I was expecting that. Ethiopia is not a swimmers' country and I have not trained in an Olympic size pool," he said.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
But not everything is sunshine and support for the athlete. Aside from the problematic body shaming and Eric the Eel comparisons, some people on social media have been quick to question how he qualified for the Games.
According to some, Habte was sent to Rio based on nepotism as opposed to ability. Allegedly, president of the Ethiopian Swimming Federation, Kiros Habte Kinfe, is Robel's very own father.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Sigh. We just don't know what to think anymore.
Topics Olympics
Jerico Mandybur is the editor of Mashable Australia. Previously, she worked as a digital editor at SBS, Oyster Mag, MTV and ASOS. Tweet her at @jerico_m.
