KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 — Adidas has issued an apology for ‘any upset or distress caused’ by featuring Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid in advertisements for its relaunched 1972 Munich Olympic sneaker.
Known globally for its athletic footwear, Adidas chose Hadid as the face of its SL72 campaign, marking the 52nd anniversary of the Munich Olympics by reintroducing Adidas' iconic sneaker from the 1970s.
The 1972 Munich Olympics were marred by a tragic terrorist attack where 11 Israeli athletes and one German police officer lost their lives at the hands of a Palestinian militant group amid the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hadid, whose father is Palestinian, openly identifies as "a proud Palestinian."
The 27-year-old actively supports Palestine and often uses her platform to advocate for Palestinians affected by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. She was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world last year.
“We are conscious that connections have been made to tragic historical events — though these are completely unintentional — and we apologise for any upset or distress caused,” said Adidas in a statement to USA TODAY Sports.
“As a result, we are revising the remainder of the campaign. We believe in sport as a unifying force around the world and will continue our efforts to champion diversity and equality in everything we do.”
The SL72 campaign showcased Hadid in Adidas attire, holding flowers and highlighting the sneakers.
"Presenting Bella Hadid with her flowers in the SL 72," read a post by Adidas Originals on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Following an apology and a commitment to reassess the campaign, all tweets featuring Hadid were removed from Adidas Originals' X account and Instagram. However, as of yesterday afternoon, Hadid continued to be featured on Adidas' website.
The American Jewish Committee (AJC) urged Adidas to address the ' egregious error’.
"At the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, 12 Israelis were murdered and taken hostage by Palestinian terrorist group Black September. For Adidas to pick a vocal anti-Israel model to recall this dark Olympics is either a massive oversight or intentionally inflammatory. Neither is acceptable," the AJC posted on X yesterday.
