Rugby Benetton: after the banana in Traoré, Nemer disqualified for 6 months

The Benetton and Italrugby prop Ivan Nemer was disqualified by the federal court until 30 June 2023, after what happened at the Benetton team dinner last Christmas, which had seen him involved as the author of a “gift” in very bad taste to teammate Cherif Traoré. The case dates back to December 20, when during a Secret Santa among Benetton players (a custom that consists of exchanging gifts without knowing the sender of each one) Traoré found himself in front of a rotten banana. A gesture that caused immense displeasure in the green-and-whites and national team player that led him to tell everything on social media. The author of the gift was not immediately disclosed, and in reality it has never been officially declared until today, even if the rumors had led to Ivan Nemer within a day and no one had ever denied them, with Benetton he had limited himself to indicating the player as “unavailable” in the announcements of the weekly formations.

The measure

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The Italian-Argentine prop, who has 11 appearances for the Azzurri and 41 for Benetton, will not take the field until the end of the season, automatically skipping the entire Six Nations which will begin next week. Furthermore, the provision provides that the player actively participates in the Migrant Project of the Italian Rugby Federation and takes part in a training and awareness-raising course on integration issues at an independent structure. The future involvement of the athlete in international activity will depend on the success of this path, the FIR informs. After all, both World Rugby (the world federation of the oval ball) and the URC (the international tournament in which Benetton plays) had immediately asked for clarity on the matter.

Taker

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As Nemer himself said, this disqualification will be an opportunity to reflect further and become a better person: “What happened does not represent me, but at the same time it must make me and make us reflect on how much more needs to be done to change our culture , overcome the most vulgar stereotypes, get closer to each other even more than what already happens. I accept the disqualification and the reintegration process with serenity but above all I trust, in the months and years to come, that I will be able to contribute with my testimony to making more and more young rugby players aware of issues that must be addressed and understood to improve not only our sport, but the world we live in” declared the blue at the end of the federal proceeding. “Racism has not and will never have any role in my life, just as it shouldn’t have in the life of each of us” added Nemer : “I am deeply sorry for what happened, for the stupidity of my gesture, for the displeasure caused to a friend, for having caused damage to my team, my teammates, the country I represent and the Game I love. I come from a multicultural country like Argentina, where cultures have been mixing for over a century, and I’ve always shared the locker room and the field with teammates and friends from all over the world.”