Adam Goodes, an Austrailian Rules football player, heard a 13-year-old girl shout out racist remarks to him during a game and pointedly kicked her out of the stadium.
The Sydney Swans forward said, "That's what hurt me so bad... When I turned around, I just saw this young face and... it was just sad."
Goodes had to leave the arena after the accusation because it was too saddening for him.
The 13-year-old Collingwood fan shouted "ape" at the Aboriginal Rules player. He has commented that he had heard the derogatory shootouts before, and it was "shattering" for him to hear it.
The incident happened at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Goodes stopped in the middle of the game and pointed the girl out to the security, to make sure that she is removed from the stadium. Goodes claimed that the fight was against racism, not the 13-year-old girl.
Early morning on Saturday, the Rules player tweeted saying that the girl had been contacting him, doing her best to apologize. He doesn't want the situation to become a "witch-hunt," but does want to "help educate society better so it doesn't happen again."
"It's not her fault," he defended her saying, "She's 13, she's still so innocent, I don't put any blame on her. Unfortunately it's what she hears, in the environment she's grown up in that has made her think that it's OK to call people names."
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