Rugby: “Death threat”, “insults” … why the photo of a player and his partner arouses violent reactions

An amateur Rugby player, of Franco-Ivorian origin, evolving within the Floirac club (Federal 1, 5ᵉ Division) near Bordeaux, filed a complaint after being the target of hundreds of hateful messages on social networks.

Marvin Pivert, selected in the Ivorian national team since 2022, explained Thursday, in the company of his partner, during an intervention on the local TV7 channel, having received “hundreds” of “racist, uninhibited, misogynist and sexist messages” “. These attacks were launched by the publication, on Tiktok, of a photo showing them together.

This image, published in November, seems to have been “rebuilt” recently by the platform algorithm. Since mid-January, she has aroused a wave of hateful comments, mainly directed against their relationship, criticizing the fact that a woman with white skin is in a couple with a black man, said the player evolving in the pillar.

The couple announced on Monday, via their Instagram account, having filed a complaint. This approach was quickly followed by support brands on the social network, in particular from local rugby clubs such as the Union Bordeaux Bègles and the Stade Rochelais, as well as Cameron Woki, French international.