Racism 'swept under carpet' in Germany, says Boris Becker

The six-time Grand Slam champion claims he was the target of angry comments "from Germany" on Twitter after participating in an anti-racism demonstration in London over the weekend.

Becker spoke out in a video message posted on the platform.

"I must have hit a sore spot with my Tweet about my family history" and Black Lives Matter, said Becker, whose ex-wife Barbara is the daughter of an African-American, while the mother of his second wife Lilly comes from Suriname.

"In our country it is swept a bit under the carpet and I think that's a pity.

"We should talk about it much more publicly", said the 52-year-old, who called for more social engagement against racism in his native country.

"We are all one family."

In an earlier Tweet, Becker said he was "shocked, shaken and horrified" by the "many insults ONLY from Germany".

"Why, why, why? Have we become a country of racists...?" he added.

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The death of George Floyd, who died in police custody on May 25th in Minneapolis, Minnesota, sparked protests across Europe and Germany at the weekend.

A reported 20,000 turned out in Munich, along with 14,000 in Hamburg, 10,000 in Stuttgart, and large gatherings also took place in Düsseldorf, Freiburg, Cologne, Hanover, Frankfurt and several other cities.

In Berlin, an estimated 15,000 people attended a demonstration at the central Alexanderplatz, despite a registration for only 1,500. Police used Twitter to tell protesters that the event was ‘full' just 45 minutes after its scheduled start time and asked people to stop arriving.