Olympic Analyst Claims Skier’s Performance Deteriorated Because She Got Married

Did I mention this happened on Valentine’s Day?

February 15, 2018

NBC ski analyst Bode Miller has some weird thoughts about marriage. Apparently, Miller believes that matrimony is bad for your skiing career—that is, if you’re a woman. Despite the fact that Miller is himself an Olympian and World Cup alpine ski racer, I’m going to go ahead and and say he has no idea WTF he’s talking about here.

Miller sparked controversy at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics when discussing Austrian skier Anna Veith’s slow start in the ladies’ giant slalom event. In a comment, he suggested that her performance was somehow hurt by her marriage. Did I mention this happened on Valentine’s Day?

“The knee is certainly an issue,” Miller said. (Veith, who won gold in the women’s super-event at the 2014 Winter Olympics, injured her anterior cruciate ligament in 2016.) But then Bode when from talking about knees to putting his foot straight into his mouth. “I want to point out she also got married. And it’s historically very challenging to race the World Cup with a family or after being married. Not to blame the spouses, but I just want to toss that out there that it may be her husband’s fault.” Of course, Twitter reacted to Miller's idiotic comments somewhat predictably.

Miller later apologized for his comment, saying it was “an ill-advised attempt at a joke.” Better stick to skiing, dude. I don’t see an HBO standup special in your future. P.S. I'm dying to know what fellow NBC commentator Leslie Jones has to say about all this.

This year’s Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang promise all of the obscure sports in the world, and some other additional interesting factors. Given the doping scandals, Korean conflict, and some new events being added to the rotation, it’s sure to be an interesting Olympic Games. Here are 9 things you need to know.

Chris Gaine3104 days ago