Dan Orlovsky revealed in a recent interview that he deleted a tweet in the wake of the gender controversy engulfing Algerian boxer Imane Khelif because of how it would reflect on ESPN.
As Italian boxer Angela Carini tearfully withdrew from her fight against Khelif at the Paris Olympics, there were questions and outrage about whether Khelif was a biological female.
Khelif’s Algerian passport says that she is a female, and transgenderism is banned in Algeria, but Khelif was disqualified from last year’s World Boxing Championship after failing a test the Russian-led IBA claimed showed she had XY chromosomes.
As the internet was reacting to this event, Orlovsky posted on X: “Protect our daughters.”
In an interview with Barrett Media’s Derek Futterman, Orlovsky explained why he later deleted his tweet.
“When you’re an employee of a big company, your social media page doesn’t just get to be your social media page,” Orlovsky said. “That’s a fantasy, so you have to represent yourself and the company that you work for in the proper way.”
Orlovsky is one of ESPN’s most highly regarded NFL analysts.
His comments about deleting his tweet have received additional attention as ESPN fired Sam Ponder this week, citing budget cuts.
Ponder has been outspoken about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports.
Robert Griffin III was also let go by the company.
2024 PARIS OLYMPICS
The IOC defended its decision to allow Khelif to compete, saying that the IBA made an “arbitrary decision” in disqualifying her.
Khelif ultimately won the gold medal at 66kg by defeating Chinese fighter Yang Liu.
“I’m fully qualified to take part in this competition,” Khelif said after her gold medal victory. “I’m a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman, and I am qualified.”