Champion golfer Tiger Woods on Monday broke his silence on the death of George Floyd and called the incident "shocking".
In a tweet, the 15-times major champion said, "My heart goes out to George Floyd, his loved ones and all of us who are hurting right now."
“I have always had the utmost respect for our law enforcement," he added.
"They train so diligently to understand how, when and where to use force. This shocking tragedy clearly crossed that line," the tweet added.
Woods is not the lone athlete to have mourned the death of George Floyd as a number of prominent athletes have also spoken their heart out.
"I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry," tweeted legendary basketball player Michael Jordan.
"I see and feel everyone's pain, outrage and frustration. I stand with those who are calling out the ingrained racism and violence toward people of colour in our country. We have had enough," the tweet added.
Statement from Michael Jordan: pic.twitter.com/lWkZOf1Tmr
— Jordan (@Jumpman23) May 31, 2020
Referring to the six-day civil disturbance in 1992 after four white police officers were acquitted of beating African-American man Rodney King, Woods added, "I remember the Los Angles riots and learned that education is the best path forward.
"We can make our points without burning the very neighbourhoods that we live in," he further said.
“I hope that through constructive, honest conversations we can build a safer, unified society,” Woods added in his tweet.
A video showing Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin holding George Floyd's neck by his knee for nearly nine minutes has added fuel to the public outrage.
Derek Chauvin has been arrested and he has also been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.
Meanwhile, a county medical examiner on Monday declared the death of George Floyd as a homicide.
Moreover, an independent autopsy commissioned by his family has also ignited a major controversy across the USA.
However, Floyd's family has appealed to consider charging Chauvin with first-degree murder.
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