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Australian wheelchair rugby player Ryley Batt faces disciplinary action for an image and caption he posted on Instagram on Thursday.
Batt, who is currently with the Australian team in Vancouver for the Canada Cup, issued a heartfelt apology after the post was found to be a breach of Paralympics Australia’s Code of Conduct and a violation of the Code of Ethics of the tournament organisers, BC Wheelchair Sports Associations and Wheelchair Rugby Canada.
Batt received an official warning by all three organisations ahead of Australia’s first match on Friday against reigning Paralympic champions, Great Britain.
The offending post has since been deleted.
Paralympics Australia Chief Executive Officer Catherine Clark said it was disappointing that an athlete of Batt’s stature and experience in the Paralympic Movement could make such a misjudgement.
“It has been made very clear to Ryley by Paralympics Australia’s Wheelchair Rugby Program Senior Management that this post was totally unacceptable and not reflective in any way of the standard we expect,” Clark said.
“Ryley has been issued with a firm reprimand by PA and may be subject to further disciplinary action when he returns home from Canada later this week.
“PA does acknowledge that Ryley has represented Australia with distinction for more than 18 years, including his role as Australian Paralympic Team co-captain for Tokyo 2020. We believe this breach is entirely out of character and is the first blemish in an otherwise exemplary career on and off the court.
“Ryley has expressed deep remorse for his action and we will support him as continues to learn from this.”
Posting on Instagram on Friday, Batt said: “I would like to sincerely apologise for my social media post from yesterday.
“By no means were my comments intended to be racist and hurtful. However, I now understand that they were offensive, uneducated and damaging. I’m extremely embarrassed by my comments, as they are not a true reflection of who I am.
“I made a mistake here and will continue my education around this area and promise to be better.”
Paralympics Australia has written to BC Wheelchair Sports Associations, Wheelchair Rugby Canada and World Wheelchair Rugby to acknowledge the seriousness of the breach and to outline the organisation’s response.
Posted: 3 June 2022
