Olympic broadcaster Bob Ballard broke his silence Monday after being removed from Eurosport’s coverage of the Summer Games for a controversial remark he made about the Australian women’s swimming team.
Ballard addressed the issue in a two-part statement on his X account while the Paris Games continued. “The comments I made during the Australian freestyle relay victory ceremony on Saturday have caused some offense,” he wrote. “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.”
He continued, “I shall miss the Eurosport team dearly and wish them all the best for the rest of the Olympics. No further comment will be issued. Thank you.”
Ballard also defended his colleague, Lizzie Simmonds, who appeared to be offended by his remarks. He stated that no one should direct their frustration towards her.
The controversial comment occurred after the Australian team won the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. Ballard said, “Well, the women are just finishing up. You know what women are like … hanging around, doing their makeup,” as reported by the New York Post.
If this is what Bob Ballard got removed from Olympic swimming coverage for then holy fuck we really need to grow up as a society.
Not liberal or conservative, just thinking for myself. This is an absolutely harmless joke with zero malice or insensitivity. https://t.co/LPSAzniCDN
— absolute toast (@Absolute_Toast) July 29, 2024
Lizzie Simmonds called Ballard’s remark “outrageous,” leading to Eurosport’s decision to remove Ballard from their Olympics coverage. Eurosport released a statement, reported by The Independent, saying, “During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment. To that end, he has been removed from our commentary roster with immediate effect.”
Ballard, a long-time staple of Olympics coverage and a freelance broadcaster for BBC, faced swift consequences for his comments.
The Australian relay team, consisting of Emma McKeon, Shayna Jack, Mollie O’Callaghan, and Meg Harris, won the gold medal in Saturday’s 4×100-meter relay, defeating the United States and China. The team set an Olympic record with a time of 3:28.92. The U.S. team included Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, Torri Huske, and Simone Manuel, while the Chinese team featured Yang Junxuan, Cheng Yujie, Zhang Yufei, and Wu Qingfeng.
