Great Britain's Amy Wilson-Hardy. PA Images/Alamy Images

British rugby player out of Olympics amid racism allegations

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Jul 31, 2024 8:26 AM ET

Team Great Britan (Team GB) has sent one of its rugby sevens stars home from the 2024 Paris Olympics after she allegedly sent a racist message to an anonymous recipient on WhatsApp.

The player in question, Amy Wilson-Hardy, will face an investigation over the alleged incident, reported several British media outlets. Amid the allegations, the British Olympic Association (BOA) announced Tuesday that Wilson-Hardy had withdrawn from the Paris Games "on medical grounds."

The BOA also confirmed it had seen a screengrab of the message allegedly sent by Wilson-Hardy and is investigating the authenticity of the WhatsApp conversation.

"The British Olympic Association has confirmed that Amy Wilson-Hardy has been withdrawn on medical grounds from the Paris 2024 rugby sevens placement matches and will be replaced by Tokyo 2020 Olympian Abi Burton. The British Olympic Association has been made aware of an image published on a social media platform and is investigating the matter," a BOA spokesperson said, via The Guardian.

Wilson-Hardy has yet to address the controversy.

BREAKING: Amy Wilson-Hardy has been withdrawn on medical grounds from the Paris 2024 rugby sevens placement matches and will be replaced by Abi Burton. pic.twitter.com/3BOEhNCx4z
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) July 30, 2024

The BOA's announcement came shortly after Team GB lost to China in the 5-8 placing rugby sevens match at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Later, Team GB defeated Ireland in the 7-8 placing match.

Wilson-Hardy was on the pitch when Team GB lost 17-7 to Team USA in the quarterfinal on Monday, which ended the country's hopes for a rugby medal in Paris. She was also a part of the Team GB squad that finished fourth in Rio 2016 and played a key role in her country making the final of the 2017 Rugby Women's World Cup where it lost to New Zealand in the title game.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

More must-reads: