NBC commentator Bode Miller has apologized for suggesting that a female skier’s poor performance during the 2018 Winter Olympic Games was due to her recent marriage.
Miller, who is a gold-medal winning skier himself, made the comments during the women’s giant slalom Wednesday.
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He said that Anna Veith, an Austrian skier who won a gold medal at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games, may have under-performed because of knee problems — and her marriage.
“The knee is certainly an issue. I want to point out she also got married. And it’s historically very challenging to race on the World Cup with a family or after being married,” he said.
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“Not to blame the spouses, but I just want to toss that out there, that it could be her husband’s fault.”
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The 28-year-old, who was Austria’s flagbearer for the opening ceremonies, underwent surgery on her left knee in March 2017 and returned to training in September. She was also injured in 2015 while training.
Miller’s remarks prompted backlash online, with some accusing him of sexism.
The criticism resulted in an apology from Miller soon after.
“Yea, I apologize. That was an ill-advised attempt at a joke,” he said on-air.
He added that a spouse can actually be “your biggest supporter” during competition.
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“And on Valentine’s Day I didn’t mean to throw spouses under the bus. Certainly, I’m going to be hearing it from my wife, I know.”
On Twitter, Miller wrote another clarification directed at Veith, saying the “changing priorities” of marriage are hard on males and females.
Miller isn’t the only NBC Olympics host to find himself in hot water. Katie Couric also faced heat this Olympics for an incorrect comment she made about Netherlands’ weather.
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During the opening ceremony, she claimed that the Dutch use skating as a means of transportation because cold weather leaves their canals frozen. Couric said that’s why the country’s speed skaters are so successful in races.
But, as several Twitter users pointed out, Netherlands’ climate is relatively mild. And the canals often don’t freeze over in the winter, or at least not all season.
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Couric later apologized for the error.
“I was trying to salute your historical passion for the sport but it didn’t come out that way,” she wrote on Twitter.
— With files from The Associated Press