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Athletes representing America at the Olympics in Tokyo next summer will not be penalized if they kneel or take part in any other type of "respectful" protest. The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee made the announcement on Thursday following months of American athletes pushing for the change, which stems from Rule 50 of the IOC Olympic Charter. That rule prohibits protests at the games during the action, according to the Associated Press.

The rule reads, "No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas."

Despite that IOC rule, the USPCO says "peaceful" and "respectful" demonstrations by United States athletes will not lead to punishment. The decision will also apply to the Olympic trials.

Usually, the IOC lets the country's federation deal with penalties for an athlete who breaks rules at the games. But with the USOPC saying parts of Rule 50 won't apply to American athletes, it is not yet clear if the IOC will take matters into their own hands and sanction athletes on their own. 

The announcement comes after a group of United States athletes wrote a set of recommendations to the USOPC earlier in the year, outlining that they'd like to have the same rights as athletes in major American sports leagues -- many of which protested racial injustices in 2020.

"Not only has the U.S. athlete family been waiting on something that speaks to who we are, but we know the world was waiting on us for guidance as to how we can get this right," Moushaumi Robinson, a member of the athletes group that wrote to the USOPC who won a gold medal at the 2004 games, told the AP.

The IOC has been tough on their stance in keeping Rule 50 as is, saying that Olympic competitions are not the time for political statements. The USOPC expects some negative reaction from the IOC, but will persist.

"We can't walk the walk as a movement if we don't look at this issue, in particular," USOPC's CEO Sarah Hirshland told the AP.