Former US women’s soccer player Megan Rapinoe speaks out against USA TODAY journalist Christine Brennan asking a wnba player Dijonai Carrington about the incident that gave Caitlin Clark a black eye.
Clark got a black eye when Carrington hit him with one of his nails in Clark’s first playoff game on September 22.
Brennan asked Carrington about the incident and whether he did it on purpose During a media scrum on September 24 before Game 2 between the Connecticut Sun and Indiana Fever. Carrington responded by insisting that this was not intentional.
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Rapinoe commented on the exchange during an episode his podcast“A Touch More with Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe,” said Wednesday that the question was “loaded” and “felt racist.”
“Initially hearing it, my internal reaction was, ‘This isn’t good, this doesn’t feel good, honestly, this sounds racist. It feels like you’re putting DiJonai in an impossible position,'” Rapinoe said. Said.
“I think it’s very disingenuous for Christine Brennan and other media members to say, ‘I’m just asking questions,’ but what’s really happening is protecting and shaming white players versus black players. “It’s your natural instinct to go after players and call them out. That’s really the issue for me.”
Rapinoe and Bird, her husband, scoffed at the idea that Carrington was even able to intentionally look into Clark’s eyes.
Indiana’s Kaitlyn Clark is shown after suffering an eye injury during the first round of the WNBA playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut on September 22, 2024. (Mark Smith-Imagen Images)
“The basis of the question depends on the belief that DiJonai is aiming, that DiJonai swung or swiped specifically at Caitlin’s eyeball. First, the square-footage of his eyeball is very small. Do you know how hard it is to poke someone in the eye?” Rapinoe said.
Bird continued, “That was my first thought. Do you know how difficult it would be to aim and poke a hole in someone’s eye?”
Both Bird and Rapinoe also strongly refuted the notion that Clarke has been targeted by opposing players this year, calling the idea “fraudulent.”
Many of Clarke’s fans have expressed outrage over incidents in his rookie year in which he was physically abused by opposing players.
As a female athlete, I do not agree with playing with men in collegiate sports
Indiana Fever’s Kaitlin Clark reacts after a flagrant foul by the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena on August 30, 2024 in Chicago. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Clark took an illegal hip check from Chicago Sky forward Chennady Carter on June 1, when the Sky player charged directly at the Fever rookie and knocked him down during a stoppage in play. After the game, Clark said that Carter’s hit “wasn’t a basketball game.”
Sky rookie and Clark’s longtime rival, Angel Reese, hit Clark in the head with his hand while trying to block a layup in a game between the two teams on June 16. Then in August, Sky player Diamond DeShields sent Clarke flying and then sliding across the hardwood. On a play that was later upgraded to a major-1 foul.
The Carrington incident, which gave Clarke a black eye, was the most recent example, but it was not ruled a foul. Just days after Brennan questioned Carrington about it, the WNBA Players Association issued a statement on September 27 condemning her for the question.
“To non-professional members of the media like Christine Brennan: You are not fooling anyone. That so-called interview in the name of journalism was a blatant attempt to provoke a professional athlete into participating in a story that is false and Designed to promote racism.” Anti-homophobic and misogynistic vitriol on social media. You can’t hide behind your tenure.”
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Indiana guard Kaitlin Clark screams in pain as her teammates help her up after suffering an injury during the second quarter against Connecticut at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on May 20, 2024. (Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire)
The statement accused Brennan of “abusing your privileges,” adding that he “does not deserve the credentials issued to you.” The union also called on USA TODAY to take action.
Brennan defended his question during an interview on CNN this week.
“I would ask that question 100 times out of 100. I would ask it today. The athlete has every opportunity to take that question and go with it the way she wants. And obviously she did that. So, that’s what The opportunity is I think any journalist gives an athlete a chance to present his or her side when you’re covering a story,” Brennan said.
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