Polish tennis player Agnieszka Radwanska is not apologizing for posing nude in ESPN The Magazine’s “Body Issue” even though her spread resulted in criticism in her home country.
Radwanska, the No. 4-ranked player in the world, was dropped as an ambassador by a Catholic youth group for posing in the magazine, which they considered “immoral behavior.”
“It’s a shame that someone who has declared their love for Jesus is now promoting the mentality of men looking at a woman as a thing rather than a child of God worthy of respect and love,” a senior Catholic priest, told The Telegraph. ”If she meets a man who she can truly love and establish a happy family and raise Catholic children, then she would probably have to hide these pictures from relatives.”
Radwanska addressed the criticism and defended herself in a statement posted to her Facebook page on Friday.
“For those that are not familiar with the magazine, ESPN The Body Issue is a celebration of the beauty of the bodies of the best athletes in the world. It includes both men and women of all ages and all shapes and sizes. Other athletes photographed include San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick, 77-year-old golf legend Gary Player, and Olympic volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings – during and after her pregnancy. My tennis colleagues Serena Williams, Daniela Hantuchova and Vera Zvonareva have all participated in the past.
“The pictures are certainly not meant to cause offense and to brand them as immoral clearly does not take into account the context of the magazine. Moreover, they do not contain any explicit imagery whatsoever. I train extremely hard to keep my body in shape and that’s what the article and the magazine is all about. If you read the interview, it only discusses my job as an athlete and what I have to do physically to be able to participate at the highest level of sport.
“It has been suggested by some members of the press (among others) that I was paid for the photo shoot. This is absolutely not the case. Neither I nor any of the other athletes were paid. I agreed to participate to help encourage young people, and especially girls, to exercise, stay in shape and be healthy.”
Well, that should settle it, no? Like Radwanska said, the magazine issue is more about celebrating fit athletes than showing naked people. Or, do you feel there’s not a difference between the two?
La organización polaca “Cruzada Joven” excluyó a #AgniezkaRadwanska por su desnudo en ESPN. http://t.co/mujFpxCZD6 pic.twitter.com/GV7MfYQ0l6
— enlaprorroga.com (@enlaprorroga) July 16, 2013
Photo: Twitter/ESPN the Magazine
Racquet clap to Beyond the Baseline
