Olympics broadcaster breaks silence after being removed from coverage over Australian women's swim team remark
An Olympic broadcaster broke his silence on Monday after he was removed from coverage over a remark he made about the Australian women's swim team.
Olympic broadcaster Bob Ballard broke his silence Monday after he was removed from Eurosport’s coverage of the Summer Games for a remark he made about the Australian women’s swimming team.
Ballard wrote a two-part statement on his X account as the Paris Games continued.
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"The comments I made during the Australian freestyle relay victory ceremony on Saturday have caused some offense," Ballard wrote in a post. "It was never my intention to upset or belittle anyone and, if I did, I apologize. I am a massive advocate of women’s sport.
"I shall miss the Eurosport team, dearly and wish them all the best for the rest of the Olympics," he added. "No further comment will be issued. Thank you."
Ballard also wrote that no one should be going after Lizzie Simmonds, who appeared to take offense to the remark he made.
He talked about what "women are like" in reference to the Australian team after they won the 4x100-meter freestyle on Saturday.
"Well, the women are just finishing up. You know what women are like … hanging around, doing their makeup," Ballard said, per the New York Post.
Simmonds called Ballard’s remark "outrageous."
Eurosport removed Ballard from their Olympics coverage afterward.
"During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment," the company said in a statement, per The Independent. "To that end, he has been removed from our commentary roster with immediate effect."
He has been a staple for Olympics coverage for several years and was a freelance broadcaster for BBC as well.
Australia’s relay team, made up of Emma McKeon, Shayna Jack, Mollie O'Callaghan and Meg Harris, won the gold medal in Saturday’s 4x100-meter relay, defeating the United States and China. The team set an Olympic record with a time of 3:28.92.
The United States' team was made up of Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, Torri Huske and Simone Manuel. China’s team was made up of Yang Junxuan, Cheng Yujie, Zhang Yufei and Wu Qingfeng.
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