The Prince of Wales has thrown his support behind soccer star Marcus
Rashford’s mission to tackle child hunger.
Speaking on the UK’s Radio 4 about sustainable farming, Prince Charles named the 23-year-old sportsman among a select few celebrities whose work aligns with his own passion.
“From field to fork, extraordinary work is being done to try to build a better food system for everyone, be it Jamie Oliver promoting education and a balanced diet; [restaurateur] Henry Dimbleby's ambitions for safe, healthy and affordable food; or Marcus Rashford whose mission off the football field is to tackle child hunger.”
The Manchester United forward has been an ardent advocate for the British government to provide free school meals, especially during school holidays, for children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. He himself was a recipient of free school meals as a child growing up in a working-class family in Manchester.
Earlier
in the week Charles supported Marcus again when he noted how the “the rich
diversity of cultures which make this country so special – and in many ways
unique – lies at the heart of what we can be as a nation”.
Many saw the quote was a response to the racist abuse Rashford and England teammates Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho received after they missed penalty kicks in the final of the Uefa Euro 2020 tournament. Italy won the game 3-2 on penalties.
In a statement on social media, Rashford apologised for his penalty miss: “All I can say is sorry. I wish it had gone differently,” before taking a stand against the racist trolls.
“I can take critique of my performance all day long, my penalty was not good enough, it should have gone in but I will never apologise for who I am and where I came from.”
— Marcus Rashford MBE (@MarcusRashford) July 12, 2021
SOURCES:
DAILYMAIL.CO.UK, NEWS24.COM