Retired figure skater and NBC Olympics commentator Johnny Weir got himself into some hot water for comments he made at an event earlier this week — dismissing Russia’s strict anti-gay legislation in advance of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Weir, who is openly gay, offhandedly characterized the laws as “no anal sex in front of libraries,” according to Gay City News, which reported on Weir’s Monday talk at Barnard College on the role of Olympic athletes.
“I’ve never had a bad experience in Russia, not gotten called a fag or beat up,” said Weir, whose husband is of Russian descent. “I only see the rosy, golden side [of Russia]. I choose to see Russia in an arrogant, selfish way. I didn’t know what to think about the new law.”
His talk was protested by LGBT rights group Queer Nation, which criticized Weir for refusing to boycott the Olympic Games. One picketer’s banner reportedly read “Weir: Russian Olympic Clown; N.B.C.: Naïve Bloody Collaborators.”
“I could never forgive myself if I was pro-boycott,” Weir said Monday. “Just to piss off [Vladimir] Putin is not a reason not to field a team. I’m hard-headed.”
He then referred to the activist protestors as “idiots like the ones outside tonight, dumping vodka in the streets.”
Weir, who writes a regular column for the Falls Church (Va.) News-Press, apologized for that remark in the column on Tuesday.
“I felt, and still feel, a great deal of remorse for allowing myself to insult other people, fighting in their own way, and for using insulting words instead of my usual cheerleading antics for one and all,” he wrote.
He said he felt threatened by being protested in person and was on edge from dealing with “an unsafe fan situation.”
“However, I realized that there is no excuse to hurl insults at those who oppose you, or those who think differently than you and as a believer in free will and free speech, I allowed my own fear and emotion to get the better of me and for a moment I became a hypocrite.”
NBC Sports issued a statement defending Weir.
“We’re supportive of Johnny’s apology for his choice of words Monday night in an emotional setting,” an NBC Sports spokesperson said. “As we’ve previously stated, NBC will cover all newsworthy issues as they are relevant to the Games, including the LGBT law.”