The Olympics won't allow athletes to protest during the games, but several Americans may still get a chance

Race Imboden knelt during the US national anthem played at the 2019 Pan American Games.Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images

• The Olympics has long been a platform for athletes to demonstrate and protest.
• The IOC passed a ruling in 2019 that forbade athletes from demonstrating during events.
• The USOPC will not punish athletes for demonstrating however.

The Olympics has a rich history of serving as a platform for competing athletes to demonstrate their physical talents and social activism.

From John Carlos and Tommie Smith raising their fists in a Black Power salute in 1968 to Věra Čáslavská refusing to face the Soviet flag during a medal ceremony that same year, Olympic athletes have historically been courageous enough to express their beliefs on the world stage.

But now, after a year that saw a resurgence in social activism, the Olympics may not be as welcoming of that activism as some might like. The International Olympics Committee (IOC) will prohibit athletes from protesting on the field or during ceremonies.

However, the IOC has left disciplinary decisions for violating the policy in the hands of each country's respective Olympic committee. The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) announced that it would not discipline athletes for protesting during events this year.

That leaves the door open for several American athletes with strong ties to charities, organizations, and general movements to put their beliefs on display on the global stage.

Here's a look at some of the athletes we could see demonstrate during the Tokyo Olympics and the causes they represent: