It's pretty undeniable that Andy Murray is a champion in his own right, especially after his spectacular second consecutive Olympic gold-medal win on Sunday night. Celebrating his accomplishments, however, does not mean demeaning those of other athletes — especially female athletes. In a recent interview, Murray was quick to remind a reporter that he is not the first person to have won more than one tennis gold medal at the Olympics.
When BBC reporter John Inverdale congratulated him on being the first "person" to win two Olympic gold medals in tennis, Murray corrected the journalist, reminding Inverdale that he's actually just the first male tennis player to do so.
"You're the first person ever to win two Olympic tennis gold medals," Inverdale said. "That's an extraordinary feat, isn't it?"
"I think Venus and Serena [Williams] have won about four each," Murray responded.
Watch the moment here, courtesy of The Guardian.
Inverdale might have meant that Murray is the first athlete to win two Olympic golds in singles tennis (the Williams sisters each have one gold in singles and three in doubles), but the comment still serves to show how easily women's accomplishments are overlooked.
It was yet another gaffe in a series of sexist oversights from Olympic commentators this year; kudos to Murray for speaking up and not being complicit.
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