- An Olympics commentator has been removed from Paris coverage
- Bob Ballard made sexist remark about Australian female swimmers
- Eurosport acted quickly to remove the commentator from their coverage
Eurosport commentator Bob Ballard has been removed from his Olympic coverage after making a sexist comment about Australian swimmers.
After winning gold in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay, the Australian quartet – consisting of Emma McKeon, Shayna Jack, Mollie O’Calloghan and Meg Harris – left the pool in Paris.
At this point, veteran commentator Ballard said, “Well, the women just finished. You know how women are… hanging out, doing their makeup.”
A clip of the commentary has since gone viral on social media, with Eurosport taking quick action to remove Ballard from their coverage of the Olympics.
A commentator has been banned for making a sexist comment about Australian swimmers
Eurosport commentator Bob Ballard has been removed from the Paris Olympics
“During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment,” the broadcaster said in a statement.
‘He has therefore been removed from our commentary selection with immediate effect.’
Lizzie Simmonds, who commented alongside Ballard, called the remark “outrageous.”
Ballard has not yet commented publicly after making his remark, which sparked outrage online.
He did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s email seeking comment.
The embarrassing moment comes as organizers in Paris are promoting the event as “The Equal Games,” with the IOC celebrating the fact that women now make up 50 percent of competitors.
Many viewers were angry about Ballard’s comment and expressed their frustrations online.
“When will these people ever learn?” asked Professor Pragya Agarwal of Loughborough University on X. “Why aren’t they getting training?”
“Bob Ballard, hang your head in shame, stop broadcasting and go back to the 1930s,” one fan wrote on X.