[Sport] Thierry Henry paid tribute to George Floyd for eight minutes and 46 seconds

[Dr.Drako]

The former French soccer player protested racism and police abuse at the start of the duel between Montreal Impact and New England Revolution for the MLS is Back, wearing a black shirt with the slogan 'Black Lives Matter'.

Former French soccer figure Thierry Henry, current coach of the Montreal Impact, knelt on Thursday for eight minutes and 46 seconds to protest racism and pay tribute to George Floyd before his first game in the MLS restart tournament.

Eight minutes and 46 seconds is a symbolic figure for being the time in which the citizen was brutally immobilized on the ground by a policeman until he passed out and died soon after.

The crime, which has unleashed worldwide protests against racism since May, is also marking the beginning of the tournament with which the American football league (MLS) was reactivated on Wednesday after the stoppage due to the coronavirus.

 

As in the first two games of the ‘MLS is Back’ tournament, the clash between the Impact of Henry and the New England Revolution had as a preamble a demonstration of team solidarity with the anti-racist movement ‘Black Lives Matter’.

Jumping onto the court of the Disney World sports complex (Orlando), in front of the empty stands, the footballers knelt on the grass and raised a fist in the air, as did alternates and coaches.

 

Once the game started, Henry, wearing a black shirt with the motto ‘Black Lives Matter’, continued with the kneeling protest in front of his bench.

"It was eight minutes and 46 seconds, I guess you know why," said Henry after the game. “It was just to pay tribute and show support for the cause. That was basically it, it's pretty simple. "