Olympic commentator Bob Ballard said he had no intention of “upsetting or belittling anyone” while apologising for a “sexist” comment he made about Australian female swimmers.
Ballard, 64, lost his place as a commentator on Eurosport last night after saying the 4x100m freestyle relay team were late leaving the swimming venue because they were “putting on make-up”.
The former BBC commentator said: ‘The comments I made during the Australian freestyle relay victory ceremony on Saturday caused some offence.
“It was never my intention to upset or belittle anyone and if I did, I apologize. I am a big supporter of women’s sport.
“I will miss the Eurosport team very much and I wish them all the best for the rest of the Olympic Games.”
Eurosport commentator Bob Ballard has been banned from the Olympics following his comment
Team Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan, Shayna Jack, Emma McKeon and Meg Harris with their medals after the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay final at Paris La Defense Arena on Saturday.
The Australian quartet of Emma McKeon, Shayna Jack, Mollie O’Calloghan and Meg Harris won gold on Saturday at the Paris Aquatics Centre.
But as they walked out to collect their medals, Ballard said, “Well, the women are finishing up. You know what women are like… hanging around, putting on makeup.”
Lizzie Simmonds, who was alongside Ballard on commentary, called the comment “outrageous.”
The clip quickly went viral and caused outrage among some, and Eurosport quickly removed Ballard from its coverage.
“During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment,” read a statement from the broadcaster last night.
‘For this reason, we have removed him from our commentator list with immediate effect.’
The embarrassing comment comes as Paris organisers have promoted the event as “The Equality Games”, and the IOC is celebrating the fact that women now make up 50 per cent of its participants.
Olympic viewers were divided over Ballard’s comments, with some calling for her to leave and others criticising Eurosport’s decision, saying it was “just a joke”.
“When will these people learn?” asked Pragya Agarwal, a professor at Loughborough University, on Programme X. “Why aren’t they given some kind of training?”
‘Bob Ballard, hang your head in shame, walk off the air and go back to the 1930s,’ one fan wrote on X.
This is breaking news. More updates to follow.