Spain’s women won the world cup, then a man managed to ruin everything

pstrongWHAT kind of twisted world are we living in when the victim of a clear case of sexual harassment, witnessed by millions, has to go into hiding?/strong/p

pMeanwhile, the guilty man struts his stuff on the world stage, refusing to accept he has done anything wrong./p

figure id=attachment_23769845 class=wp-caption alignnone style=width: 970pximg decoding=async src=https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-jenni-hermoso-said-friday-840151024.jpg?strip=allamp;w=960 alt= class=alignnone size-thesun-article-image wp-image-23769845 width=960 height=640 /figcaption class=wp-caption-text/figcaptionfigcreditAP/figcredit/figureIt is awful Jenni Hermoso has been forced into hiding, through no fault of her own[/caption]

pThere is something obscene about “kiss-gate” Spanish span id=84f45332-7b21-4cad-8f21-860dd60dc4ca class=suggested-linkfootball/span ace a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23562190/jennifer-hermoso-who-footballer-spain/Jenni Hermoso/a feeling so overwhelmed she has to retreat from public view./p

pThe World Cup-winning span id=ea5a9e53-660f-4890-aed9-0aacb986ad89 class=suggested-linkstriker/span has come under sustained attack because the career of a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23684669/rise-career-spanish-fa-chief-football-spain-luis-rubiales/Spain’s FA President Luis Rubiales/a is now on the line thanks to his own sexist stupidity./p

pHermoso’s span id=433b63d4-70b4-47b4-9843-bdf61a3c965f class=suggested-linkcrime/span? Having the temerity to confirm what we could all see: a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23694921/luis-rubiales-jenni-hermoso-kiss-metoo/The kiss/a Rubiales planted on her lips, while yanking her head towards him in a vice-like grip, was not consensual./p

pBut never mind the evidence. From the get-go, Rubiales has strenuously denied any wrongdoing, claiming she consented and whining that he is the victim of a “social assassination” by “false feminists”./p

pSo that includes the a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/fifa/Fifa/a bosses, who a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23665775/luis-rubiales-banned-fifa-kissgate-jenni-hermoso/suspended /ahim for 90 days, the prosecutors investigating him and members of the Spanish women’s team and its coaching staff — bar the deeply unpopular head coach Jorge Vilda — some of whom have resigned in protest?/p

h2DEPRESSING STANDARD/h2

pLeaving aside Rubiales’s family — anda href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23718934/luis-rubiales-uncle-obsessed-women/ even they are divided /a— only the overwhelmingly male Spanish football federation continues to back him, circling the wagons to protect their own, as is so often the case when a man is under attack for bad behaviour towards a woman./p

pInstead of stopping him from trying to gaslight Hermoso, they too questioned her account and threatened her with legal action for lying./p

pSet aside for a moment that the kiss was filmed from almost every angle and witnessed around the world./p

pHermoso herself has stated there was no consent, that it was an “impulse-driven, sexist, out-of-place act”, and that she was put under “continuous pressure” to exonerate Rubiales./p

figure id=attachment_23769930 class=wp-caption alignnone style=width: 758pximg decoding=async loading=lazy src=https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/luis-rubiales-kissing-jenni-hermoso-839344461.jpg?strip=allamp;w=748 alt= class=alignnone size-thesun-article-image wp-image-23769930 width=748 height=960 /figcaption class=wp-caption-text/figcaptionfigcreditPixel8000/figcredit/figureThe whole world witnessed Rubiales plant a big kiss on Hermoso, seemingly without her invitation[/caption]

pWhy would she lie? It was clear from the outset that by telling the truth she was making herself a span id=f2bdd8d8-5f86-44f8-baa0-a1aadd317e0e class=suggested-linktarget/span for every macho misogynist in football./p

pAnd there’s no shortage of those. Why would she consent to a kiss from a middle-aged man who had just been filmed grabbing his crotch while standing near a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/4000069/queen-letizia-of-spain-king-felipe-vi/Queen Letizia/a of a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/where/spain/Spain/a and her 16-year-old daughter Infanta Sofia? /p

pAlso, when did this consent take place? Did he get it from Hermoso in writing before the match?/p

pIt certainly didn’t appear to be under discussion in the heat of the moment before he firmly planted his lips on hers./p

pSo far, so depressingly standard. It’s a lesson in why women often don’t report sexual harassment or abuse./p

pThey know that what happens span id=3e6e3e18-b5cd-4c34-a917-9c83aa198ab9 class=suggested-linknext/span will probably make things much, much worse./p

pUnfortunately for Rubiales and his buddies in the Spanish football federation, Hermoso and her teammates are made of sterner stuff than most victims./p

pHermoso has steadfastly stuck by her story. In a show of solidarity, 23 players of Spain’s World Cup-winning squad, as well as 32 other squad members, insist they will not play for their country again while Rubiales remains in post./p

pAnd when the Spanish FA tried to pressure the team’s backroom staff into supporting their boss, they resigned too./p

pa href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/who/sarina-wiegman/Sarina Wiegman/a has even dedicated her a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/uefa/Uefa/a Coach of the Year award to the Spanish team that pipped hera href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/23043286/why-are-england-women-called-lionesses/ span id=d63b6355-87f3-4f07-88eb-ea9163f94c62 class=suggested-linkEngland/span Women’s team/a in the final, saying they “deserve to be celebrated and listened to”./p

pShe’s right. The real story here is Spain’s brilliant performance in the World Cup./p

pAnd that is why Jenni Hermoso did not complain instantly about that kiss./p

pShe had no desire to take the shine off her teammates’ triumph./p

pWhich is more than can be said for Rubiales, a sad, posturing, middle-aged mummy’s boy, who is putting his own survival above his country’s glory. Time to kiss him goodbye./p

h2 class=has-text-align-centerTeens plan is a winner/h2

figure id=attachment_23769881 class=wp-caption alignnone style=width: 970pximg decoding=async loading=lazy src=https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/78d67e74-5f8e-4af6-b282-180d3c89ab7d.jpg?strip=allamp;w=960 alt= class=alignnone size-thesun-article-image wp-image-23769881 width=960 height=832 /figcaption class=wp-caption-textNational Service proposals are a clever way for teenagers to give back to their community/figcaptionfigcreditThe Mega Agency/figcredit/figure

pTHOSE getting in a tizz about plans for a new National Service scheme, championed by a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/who/penny-mordaunt/Penny Mordaunt/a, need to calm down./p

pIt’s not about square-bashing or uniform drills. It’s purely a plan for every 16-year-old to take part in a two-week “civic exploration” trip, which will see them travel away from home to do voluntary work./p

pThen they would build on what they have achieved by doing more volunteering in their own community. It wouldn’t even be compulsory. /p

pa href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/teenagers/Teenagers/a would have the ability to opt out before they are assigned to a programme./p

pI can’t think of a better idea to boost the confidence and self-worth of the UK’s young people, many of whom are still struggling after Covid lockdowns and are preoccupied with social media./p

pThe Commons leader said last week it would foster “goodwill and community spirit, span id=18c1aa0c-3854-4742-8655-5fde8d248a1a class=suggested-linkenergy/span and imagination” and promote “good a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/health/mental-health/mental span id=cb9360fe-a6bb-48a7-bf27-a038f7c717fc class=suggested-linkhealth/span/a and resilience”./p

pI’m 100 per cent behind her. We should expect more of our young people./p

pBy showing them how to give something back to their world, we can equip them to play a fulfilling part in it./p

h2 class=has-text-align-centerPlane sense/h2

pSOME parents are worried that the Turkish airline Corendon’s plan to launch adults-only sections on its flights will catch on./p

pThe company promises passengers “a shielded environment” that will contribute “to a calm and relaxed flight”./p

pI suspect the mums and dads complaining about this are exactly the sort who ignore their children while they scream non-stop, kick the back of other passengers’ seats and run up and down the aisle while harassed cabin crew try not to run them down with the drinks trolley./p

pWhy is this controversial? If people want to pay more to avoid putting up with that, then let them. Sounds like a good business decision to me./p

h2 class=has-text-align-centerAmanda turns the other cheek/h2

figure id=attachment_23769889 class=wp-caption alignnone style=width: 778pximg decoding=async loading=lazy src=https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/amanda-holden-instagram-834601900.jpg?strip=allamp;w=768 alt= class=alignnone size-thesun-article-image wp-image-23769889 width=768 height=960 /figcaption class=wp-caption-text/figcaptionfigcreditInstagram/figcredit/figureAmanda Holden had the perfect response to taunts from Andrew Tate[/caption]

pTHERE is something undeniably satisfying about crafting the perfect response./p

pSo hats off to a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/who/amanda-holden/Amanda Holden/a, who managed to resist putting a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/who/andrew-tate/Andrew Tate/a in his place./p

pWhen the controversial influencer claimed she was too old to pose in a bikini – er, as if – the a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/britains-got-talent/BGT /ajudge came close to hitting back with a racy picture./p

p“I had another shot of me in a bikini with just a close-up of my bum and I was tempted to post it with the caption, ‘Kiss my 52-year-old a***’,” Amanda said./p

p“But you just know something like that’s going to go on and on – and in the end, why give him the oxygen?”/p

pToo right. This failed reality TV star, who is to stand trial on allegations of a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/human-trafficking/human trafficking/a, does not need any more publicity./p

pBetter to leave him festering in his sad little bunker – or, if guilty, in jail./p

h2 class=has-text-align-centerGet #8217;em in dock/h2

figure id=attachment_23769917 class=wp-caption alignnone style=width: 726pximg decoding=async loading=lazy src=https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/cheshire-constabulary-pa-wire-note-839144860.jpg?strip=allamp;w=716 alt= class=alignnone size-thesun-article-image wp-image-23769917 width=716 height=960 /figcaption class=wp-caption-text/figcaptionfigcreditPA/figcredit/figureCowardly criminals like Lucy Letby will no longer be allowed to skip their own sentencing[/caption]

pAT last, convicted criminals will be forced to attend sentencing hearings./p

pAnd those who still resist the “reasonable force” permitted by the new a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/law/law/a could get an extra two years’ jail time added to their sentences./p

pIf you commit a crime as vile as child killers like nurse a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/who/lucy-letby/Lucy Letby/a or gunman a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/19989271/olivia-murder-suspect-thomas-cashman/Thomas Cashman/a, you should be forced to face up to the consequences – and left in no doubt about what the world thinks of you./p

h2 class=has-text-align-centerDaddy dodge/h2

pTHE study that revealed it takes first-time dads two years to feel happy in their a href=https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/relationship-advice/relationships /aagain after the birth of their child made me think./p

pI don’t doubt that it is hard for men to see their lives completely change overnight./p

pThey have to cope with sleepless nights, a grumpy, exhausted partner and hardly any social life. It’s tough./p

pBut just factor in hormone overload, sore nipples and a body you no longer recognise, and count yourself lucky./p