Tennis Star Rebukes Religious Outcry Over 'Body Issue' Nudity

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By Sam Laird2013-07-19 18:55:58 UTC

Polish tennis star Agnieszka Radwanska was dropped by a prominent Catholic youth group in her home country earlier this week after she posed for a nude photo in ESPN The Magazine's annual "Body Issue."

On Friday, she fired back at critics in a pointed and articulate message posted to her Facebook page.

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The magazine's annual "Body Issue" features nude and near-nude photos of athletes spanning a wide range of sports, sizes, shapes and ages. Radwanska posed for this year's issue naked and seated by a pool, as shown in the photo above, as well as here.

Shortly after that image hit the web, however, a Catholic youth group in Poland called Youth Crusade dropped its affiliation with Radwanska for what it deemed "immoral behavior." Radwanksa had previously participated in a Youth Crusade campaign called "I'm not ashamed of Jesus" and starred in a TV spot for the group in which she posed next to the word "Jesus" spelled out in tennis balls.

Radwanksa hadn't responded to the criticism until her Facebook post on Friday. Here's what she had to say:

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.

Whether crafted alone or with the help of PR pros, Radwanksa's response seems to have been effective. She holds by her position and points out the magazine issue's larger context, while being careful not to take too aggressive of a stance, considering she comes from a nation where 90% of citizens identify as Roman Catholic, according to the AFP.

At time of writing the post had received over 4,000 likes and the comments written in English were overwhelmingly supportive. " Shouldn't have to [defend] yourself but well said!" one face responded. "Don't let haters drag you down, your real fans still support you ... keep up the good work!"

What do you think of Radwanksa's Facebook post and the criticism that prompted it? Let us know in the comments.

Image: Janek Skarzynski/AFP/Getty Images

Topics: Entertainment, Sports, tennis