BBC's Gabby Logan supports Clare Balding amidst backlash for Olympic swimming commentary

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Gabby Logan has come to the defence of her colleague Clare Balding and the BBC, following accusations that the presenter made an 'incredulous' comment live on air.Serving as the last on duty for the BBC at Euro 2024, Gabby was hailed by many viewers as the channel's 'best', despite the fact that while she had a significant on-screen presence during the tournament in Germany, it was co-star Gary Lineker who was selected to host all the major matches, including all of England's games and the final.Gabby is part of the BBC's team for the Paris Olympics and, during a break from leading coverage from Paris, she addressed criticism aimed at Clare, who was the presenter in charge for the opening ceremony on Friday and has also overseen sports like swimming over the past few days.

It was a remark made to former Olympic swimmer and now BBC pundit Rebecca Adlington that put Clare in a difficult position. In a conversation with the two-time gold medallist, Clare seemed surprised when Rebecca informed her that Olympic swimmers had never visited her school, reports Chronicle Live.

Reacting to the tone of Clare's response, one disgruntled viewer took to X to write: "Watching the Olympic swimming last night and Clare Balding said something in such an incredulous tone which summed up the establishment perspective and how their experience differs", adding, that Clare's 'single statement said so much'.Adding to the criticism, one commentator noted that Clare's 'single statement said so much,' and continued: "Because of course Balding thought it TOTALLY NORMAL for Olympic medal winners to visit schools because being privately educated and descended from nobility and privilege this kind of thing is part of the cultural experience they