Could a full moon cast clouds over Schurter’s rainbow?
World champion faces possible repercussions for ill considered White House photo op
Nino Schurter ended his 2019 season on a high note with two big wins. Now, it looks like his off-bike antics between those wins could cast a shadow over his shining season.
While visiting the White House in Washington, D.C., Schurter and his Swiss teammates decided to pose for a photo op. The quartet “saluted” the American capitol building, with a full moon, all four showing their bare backsides to the camera. The photo, which also included Florian Vogel, Lars Forster, and mechanic Kurt Gross, had the caption “White [peach emoji] for the White House” and tagged U.S. President Donald Trump.
Schurter then decided it would be a good idea to post the photo to his Instagram stories.
While stories only last for 24 hours, several fans took notice … and screen shots. The photo remains up in this Tweet.
Now, the Swiss military unit Schurter serves under as an elite athlete has taken notice. The world champion faces potential disciplinary action from his superiors for the stunt.
Before the photo caught the attention of Swiss authorities, Schurter had been on a streak of winning races. In September, Schurter won the elite men’s race at UCI Mountain Bike World Championships, earning his eighth elite rainbow jersey for his efforts. A week later, in Snowshoe, W.Va., he won the World Cup overall for a seventh time. The two remarkable achievements cap off a year where the Swiss star seemed to struggle in early races.
It’s what happened between Canada and returning to Switzerland, though, that threatens to cast clouds over Schurter’s rainbow-winning year.
Tages-Anzeiger reported that the incident had caught the attention of Swiss military authorities. Daniel Reist, a spokesperson for the Swiss armed forces, told RSI Schurter “was paid for that day of service,” and could face possible punishment. What that will be at the discretion of his commanding officer, and will not be made public.
Reist also told Swissinfo.ch that Schurter has since apologized to his superior officer, and that the Swiss military is not interested in making a big deal out of the event due largely to the Olympic gold medallists ohterwise “exemplary service.”
Along with apologizing to the military, Schurter told Swiss tabloid Blick that he quite likes the United States. The Swiss Sportsman of the year did, though, differentiate between the country and its leadership.
“The photo was taken spontaneously,” said Schurter,” America is a beautiful country and I like to travel there.”
As for U.S. President Donald Trump, the man that inspired four full moons, Schurter was resolute. “I do not have much fondness for the current leadership.”
The lesson in all of this? If you’re an Olympic and world champion with nearly 500, 000 followers, don’t post your full moon to Instagram for the world to see. Someone will see, and take notice.
