Brazilian professional longboarder Chloe Calmon has shared her side of an altercation that went viral on social media earlier this month. The 32-year-old said that after she received a priority interference for a drop-in on Italian longboarder Ginger Caimi at the ISA championships in El Salvador, Caimi’s father followed her at her hotel and intimidated her.
In a message to The Inertia, Caimi dismissed the allegations against her father as “totally false.”
The incident stems from the start of a round-three heat where priority had not been established. Calmon took a wave in which her competitor, 14-year-old Caimi, had inside position. The judges called an interference on Calmon, which Calmon admitted was deserved. Even with the interference nullifying her second-highest score, Calmon passed the heat and Caimi fell to the repechage rounds.
However, the drama started after the heat. In an Instagram post that has since been deleted, Caimi said Calmon’s interference injured her arm, which hindered her performance during the rest of the heat. She also claimed that, after the heat, Calmon laughed at her and told her the injury was “karma.”
Caimi told The Inertia that the injury was serious enough that she would likely get an X-ray. Caimi won her next heat, but lost the following heat, placing 13th overall.
Calmon did not respond when we asked for her side of the story, but yesterday, she posted a message denying some of the allegations Caimi levied. She said there was no contact made during the interference and “the facts that circulated do not reflect how (she) experienced it.”
“There was no physical contact or have our boards collided. However, the version of facts that has circulated does not reflect how I experienced it,” Calmon said. “I was intimidated and followed at my hotel by the father/coach of the competitor. They did a post on social media defaming me and distorting the whole story. The post opened the door for free bullying towards my character without giving me the chance to defend myself or at least say my side of the story.”
“I was afraid of walking to the contest site or leaving my room by myself,” she added. “I was not in the best form mentally or emotionally to perform at the next round. I felt threatened as an athlete and, first and foremost, as a woman.”
Calmon did not address the claim that she told Caimi the injury was karma. The veteran longboarder from Rio de Janeiro finished 11th in the event.
In the deleted Instagram post, Caimi wore a brace on her arm. However, in the two subsequent heats, she did not surf with a brace.
The ISA did not comment on the dispute.
