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Professional sport has again found itself in the mire of controversy with nude photos of Nick Riewoldt, the captain of AFL grand finalists St Kilda, posted on Facebook. People are shocked and the moral do-gooders are getting ready to kick the footballers.
Again I feel that this is another situation where after the initial shock and horror, you realise that the players have done nothing wrong. It is not even in that grey area of being morally wrong but legal; it’s just boys on a player’s trip acting up.
However, this has happened for a reason and it is a stark reminder to sport stars of today about the dangers of technology. The girl, no matter how twisted or bitter she is, has got hold of these pictures and posted them on a site that has 500 million people signed up.
While the origin of these photos are disputed (St Kilda say they came from a players phone, the 17-year-old girl says she took them herself), players surely have to know the dangers of having photos taken of them in private.
On players’ trips where I come from, there is an unwritten “no photos” policy.
This means no cameras are allowed, thus preventing embarrassment at a later date for anyone who does something stupid. If the players are having a private party in Miami or they are inviting guests over for a coffee, they should make sure no photos are taken of anyone – and if they are, delete them immediately. If a member of the public catches a player then it’s just bad luck.
However, deleting photos taken on the trip or implementing a no photos policy will more than likely save embarrassment later on.
Whatever you think of the scandal, it has become apparent the girl needs help to deal with the trauma and sport stars need to be extra careful when out in public.
When Brett Favre got caught this year with his pants down, people said it would never happen in Australia. It has and it’s now a stark reminder and an unnecessary headache at the same time.
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