CRICKET commentator David Lloyd has apologised after Azeem Rafiq told a UK parliamentary committee that the former England coach had made disparaging comments about Asian cricketers.
In Tuesday's (16) distressing testimony, Rafiq, 30, catalogued a culture of widespread racism at his county club Yorkshire, describing the "inhuman" treatment he had received. He also said the sport in England was riddled with racism.
Rafiq testified that members of the media were also guilty of racism and identified Lloyd, now a Sky Sports pundit, as messaging others in the media and saying: "a clubhouse is the lifeblood of a club and Asian players don't go in there".
"In October 2020, I had a private message exchange with a third party involved in cricket, about a number of topics," Lloyd said in a statement on Twitter on Tuesday (16).
"In these messages, I referred to allegations about Azeem Rafiq which I had heard from within the game. I also made some comments about the Asian cricket community.
"I deeply regret my actions, and I apologise most sincerely to Azeem and to the Asian cricket community for doing this, and for any offence caused.
"I am strongly committed to making cricket a more inclusive sport. It is very obvious now that more work needs to be done and I will do everything I can to remove discrimination from the sport I love, and the sport that has been my life for over 50 years."
In his testimony, Rafiq said he found Lloyd's comments "disturbing" as his employers Sky were doing "amazing work on bringing racism to the front", describing the 74-year-old as "closet racist".
Sky said they would be investigating Lloyd's comments.
"Sky is committed to actively championing inclusion in cricket - and in all sports - and opposing all forms of discrimination," they said in a statement.
He gave away all their Lamborghinis once, which kind of sums up the financial whiplash.
His public digs at her family, like Kris Jenner, became impossible to ignore.
On North's style hate, Kim says her daughter genuinely does not care what trolls think.
Kim Kardashian has finally spoken up about why she left Kanye West, admitting that it was not a single event, but rather several weeks during which things slowly fell apart. The constant instability left her feeling on edge, unsafe even. Then there is North and people picking apart her clothes as if it is some battle. Kim has had to fight that battle, too, every single day.
Kim Kardashian speaks out about her turbulent split with Kanye West Getty Images/Instagram/northwsst
That "unsafe" feeling wasn't what you think
She kept using that word, "unsafe." But it is not what the tabloids want you to imagine. It was this constant low-grade dread, wondering which Kanye you would get that day. And the financial stuff was wild. Remember that time she came home and every single one of their five Lamborghinis was just gone? He had given them away to friends. Just like that.
How does anyone build a future when the next hour feels uncertain? Try mapping out your life when you cannot predict the next mood. And then the family thing started. He would go on these public rants, targeting Kris, going after her sisters. How do you even move forward after that? Arguments are normal, but hearing someone insult your family crosses a line that changes everything.
Inside the financial chaos that pushed Kim to leave KanyeGetty Images
So, how is North handling all the online hate?
Turns out, better than her mum. People lost it over that dermal piercing in Rome. But Kim says North saw the comments, and her reaction was basically a shrug. The kid said she probably would not be friends with people who hate on her blue hair anyway.
Kim is just trying to keep up. Her house is like a make-up lab on weekends, with North and her friends mastering special effects looks. But Kim admits she does not always get it right. "We made that mistake in front of the whole world," she said about one outfit choice. She is literally learning how to parent a teen while we all watch.
It all came down to a brutal choice: stick with the chaos for the sake of the four kids or save herself. She chose herself. The relationship got, as she put it, "toxic," especially when he was not willing to make changes that might have helped. It is the same gut instinct that now has her defending North, creating a stable home after all that instability, a place where her kids feel confident even if the internet does not like their lip liner.
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