Indonesian fans’ sexually charged comments to Jonatan Christie spark male harassment debate
Ever since the badminton star took his shirt off at the Asian Games, fans and academics have been trying to figure out if he is a victim of sexism
The Indonesian fans at the Jakarta Asian Games badminton arena were already ear-drum-bursting loud. But when local hero Jonatan Christie displayed a ripped torso while changing his sweat-soaked shirt between sets against Hong Kong’s Vincent Wong, they somehow managed to become even louder.
Squeals of delight from mostly female fans were accompanied by the thunder of almost 4,000 people banging their inflatable sticks. Christie noticed the adoration, and having beaten Wong in the quarter-finals, he went a step further after his semi-final victory by tossing his shirt into the audience.
He also obliged after winning gold and “Jojo” became the country’s new heartthrob. Indonesia’s social media went ballistic with hundreds of female fans writing swooning comments on various platforms, some quite explicit.
Some of the comments read: “My ovaries are exploding”, “He is so good at the net, all the more in bed”, “Oh, his shirt was thrown to the audience. I wanted to protest, why just your shirt?”, and “I’m nauseous. Maybe I’ve been impregnated online. Take responsibility Jo”.
There was even a Twitter hashtag created named #jojobukabaju, which means Jojo take off your shirt.