Raven Saunders donned her signature mask for the shout-out final, a day after the nonbinary member of Team USA sparked controversy for their participation in the women’s event.
Saunders finished 11th among the dozen finalists in the shot put, more than two metres behind gold medallist Yemisi Ogunleye.
Saunders returned to competition after an 18-month suspension for failing three drug tests.
They first caused a stir by adopting the alter ego of ‘Hulk’, before taking the character to a new level.
Appearing at today’s games, they wore a mask, their hair was dyed neon green and purple, gold grills covered their teeth and the long nails on their left hand were bedazzled in Team USA colors, with the letters HULK.
Nonbinary shot putter Raven Saunders shows off her nails and hair during Friday’s event
Saunders also donned his signature mask during the shot put final at the Olympics.
Saunders won a silver medal in the shout throw in Tokyo, but fell far short of repeating her efforts in Paris.
The unique costume chosen by Saunders is entirely his own, as they also wear the requisite red, white and blue sports uniform.
On Thursday, BBC commentator Steve Backley introduced Saunders, mistakenly referred to the athlete as a woman and was corrected by his co-commentator Jazmin Sawyers.
“The colorful character of Raven Saunders is back. It’s nice to see her back, sort of. Seeing her in some form, I mean,” Backley said, referencing Saunders’ mask, before Sawyers responded.
“We don’t really get to see them very well. Raven Saunders is genderqueer and she’s wearing a mask there — we’re pretty used to seeing them in interesting outfits,” Backley said in front of images of a masked Saunders preparing to compete.
The controversy surrounding Saunders is the latest chapter in what has been a major talking point during the Paris Games.
Female boxers Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting have been the most heavily questioned, with accusations that they both possess XY male chromosomes. Both Lin and Khelif will fight for gold medals in the coming days.
