An Australian TV commentator covering the PyeongChang Winter Games is being blasted on social media over some comments she made that many perceived to be racist — but she’s insisting her remarks weren’t racist at all.
As Australia’s Herald Sun newspaper reports, the furor erupted when former Olympic skier Jacqui Cooper — who’s providing Winter Games commentary for Australia’s Channel 7 TV network — made a seemingly shocking remark about Chinese aerial skiers.
RELATED: PyeongChang 2018: NBC Fires Commentator After Remarks Leave Koreans ‘Insulted’
“Really nicely done, great control. Very Chinese,” Cooper said of Chinese skier Yan Ting’s first jump.
”They all look the same,” she added, “they’re very hard to tell who’s who.”
RELATED: TV Station Apologizes For Mixing Up PyeongChang With Asian Restaurant Chain P.F. Chang’s
To say that social media erupted is an understatement, and numerous viewers took to Twitter to slam Cooper.
RELATED: Radio Host Patrick Connor Fired Over Sexual Remarks About 17-Year-Old Olympian Chloe Kim
Following the uproar, both Cooper and Channel 7 were quick to point out that Cooper was referring to the skiers’ techniques looking the same, not the skiers themselves. “The Chinese are trained by one coach with one technique,” she explained in a tweet, “their aim is all to jump the same.” Added Channel 7, “At no time was the commentary racist, intended to be racist or offensive.”
