Two-time Olympian Ryan Gregson apologised after sexist remarks about female runners went viral on a podcast, drawing sharp backlash and prompting an apology episode.
Australian distance runner Ryan Gregson has issued an apology after comments he made on a podcast triggered a wave of backlash for their sexist undertone.
The 35-year-old, a two-time Olympian who competed in the 1500 metres at the 2012 and 2016 Games, was speaking on the For The Kudos podcast when he described an elite race moment involving a woman runner as something that could “mess with” a male athlete’s mindset.
Gregson’s phrasing—asking whether the runner might get “chicked” because a “girl” was running close to him—became the focal point of criticism once it was linked to Agnes Jebet Ngetich.. Ngetich is the 10km world record holder and current cross country champion. meaning the remarks were not only insensitive. but also dismissive of the standard and seriousness of women’s elite distance running.
The timing of the clip amplified the reaction.. Within days of publication. social media users and former athletes called out the way the comment framed the presence of a woman in a race as a psychological disruption rather than a normal part of competition.. For many. it was the casual nature of the language—treated as a joke in the conversation—that made the backlash feel sharper. especially because Gregson is married to Genevieve Gregson. a four-time Olympian.
One of the most pointed responses questioned how an athlete with elite experience could feel comfortable speaking about women in sport in that way publicly.. Others argued that the comment reinforced a wider problem: turning women’s participation into something secondary. distracting. or somehow “less than” the performance itself.. The criticism also spread to the podcast’s audience, with listeners flooding the platform comments section with anger and disappointment.
The episode was eventually followed by a separate apology segment from the podcast team. reflecting on the impact of the original remarks.. Gregson returned in a revised. shortened version of the podcast to apologise directly. stating that the comments did not represent how he sees women in sport.. He also said he had removed himself from social media after seeing how many people were offended. adding that he felt ashamed for the offence caused.
That response matters beyond the immediate controversy.. In elite running. the sport’s credibility depends on how athletes talk about opponents and competitors—especially when women are presented as equals on the track. the course. and in results.. For viewers and younger athletes. language like “chicked” can land as more than a single misstep; it can signal what someone thinks women’s presence “means” in an event.. When the audience includes people building their own confidence and identity in sport, those signals carry weight.
Gregson’s comments also intersect with a larger cultural debate that has been rising across athletics: whether casual jokes about gender dynamics are treated as harmless banter or as patterns that keep sexism normalized.. The backlash shows how quickly “offhand” remarks can become a public test of responsibility. particularly when the person speaking has a track record in the spotlight and a spouse who also competed at the highest level.
For Misryoum readers. the takeaway isn’t only that an apology was issued—it’s that elite sport now operates under a different social lens.. Clips travel fast, context gets stripped down, and audiences increasingly expect accountability that matches the platform’s reach.. As the sport continues to grow globally. how athletes communicate about women and men competing together will likely remain a defining measure of professionalism off the track.
Going forward. Gregson and the podcast face the same question that follows many controversies in sport: whether the apology is followed by consistent changes in how issues are framed.. In a discipline built on discipline. training. and respect for competitors. the public messaging needs to reflect that standard too—because confidence at the start line should never depend on reducing someone else’s presence to a stereotype.