Athlete Responds Perfectly To Trolls Who Body-Shamed Her Online

"People need to understand this is real; that it's real violence with real impacts. And sometimes it moves from online to offline."

Stephanie

• Published in Interesting
• October 30, 2020

It seems that in this day and age, none of us are safe from the cruel torments of online trolls. Not even incredible Olympian athletes.

Lindsey Vonn, a retired skiing star, recently shared how much she has struggled with self-esteem and confidence after being the target of body-shamers on the web. The stunning 36-year-old athlete says she has been left damaged by the cruel taunts.

How did Lindsey respond to the relentless trolls? She posted some photos of herself in a bikini, of course!

In the caption Lindsey included with the bikini pics from her 36th birthday getaway, she mentioned that the comments "sometimes hurt me." She also said that "it is scarier than it seems."

Lindsey's powerful post has already received reactions to the tune of 57k and more than 4k comments. People were grateful for the athlete taking the time to share her story and spread some body-positivity.

Lindsey's story is just one of far too many in today's society. It's an example of the amount of online abuse and violence there is out there.

Online bullying has only become worse since the Covid-19 pandemic has gripped the world. In particular, violence against women.

"Online violence is a public health issue, and the effects are very detrimental. It results in physical, sexual, psychological, or economic harm, and erodes self-esteem," says journalist and a specialist in gender digital safety, Cecilia Mwende Maundu.

"First, we need public awareness. Even when I talk to my friends, many of them say online violence is no big deal," Cecilia continued.

"People need to understand this is real; that it's real violence with real impacts. And sometimes it moves from online to offline."

Well done to Lindsey for taking a stand! Let's all do the same and stand up to these parasitic trolls!

Here's how people reacted.

Stephanie