John Inverdale, for example ...

Willo62 you seem to be doing that thing where you argue in a pretendly articulate way whilst managing to miss the point.

To be fair, no one who plays a physically demanding game on tennis in that heat and under that amount of pressure is going to be looking their best or indeed, smelling their best, I'm sure. I know that when I was playing my sport (briefly) at international level, there would have been few people who's first though was 'Cor! Get a load of that one with the gum-shield, she must be an amazing sportsperson!'

That said, the only thing she should have been judged on is how well she played, and she played a blinder. If it made a difference (and it really doesn't) she has a really pleasant face and an athletic body when she's not streaming sweat, she's also bright as a button.

Men and women in positions of relative influence should be policing their stupidity even more carefully, especially if I am (albeit in a tiny capacity) paying their wages.

I do apologise for having a POV though, as I am admittedly, not the best looking person in the world, am rather hefty and am therefore less than obviously attractive.

Ah, if you mean twat then I apologise but I never knew it was a reference to private parts, but in modern usage it refers to a fool and that is the context I used it.

Not here to offend, just adding a POV.

Ah, interesting. Do vulgar words for vagina not count as profanities, then? A useful insight into your mindset, I feel.

Sorry Buffy, too stupid to realise when I have used a profanity? Please enlighten me....

The was for Buffy, by the way.

No Rats I'm afraid, just a turn of phrase from someone a little more mature.

No, Saint Murray isn't a looker, if you want to debate that then let's be having you. I applaud the ladies champion, she came from relative obscurity to win a major title. That I think is great, she is a great role model for any young tennis players out there. She is not 'pretty' she is 'normal' many of the women players who don't win or place highly are 'attractive' and have lucrative sponsorship deals which are truly offensive.
Perhaps this list should boycott products who sponsors only use the appearance of the player rather than performance?

Quite slug. Because obviously it's easy to tell from someone's online posts what they look like.

Though I'd argue one can make a fair guess at certain things from posts. Like when random trolls come on to wind women up (speaking purely hypothetically). Possibly because they're not getting any and have thus decided they don't like women very much. Or maybe it's because they don't like women very much that they're not getting any.

...not as in becoming a champion athlete, obvs, but as in not being 'acceptably' pretty. My mum was the same. I think it goes very deep and can be very subtle.

I liked Tanya Gold's article in the Guardian today. (I'm not Tanya Gold.)

I think what he said was awful. My dad said the same kind of stuff to me and it was undermining.

Playing the "these women must be jealous" (becacuse they're not as pretty) card are we Willo?

willo62 - it is your remark: "as he quite rightly points out" that gets my goat. What have looks (as in whether someone is "good looking" or not) to do with sports commentary?

Andy Murray isn't a "looker" is he? Did anyone feel the need to point that out? Would you say that someone had "quite rightly" pointed it out when discussing his play or his preparation for his career?

Me too mignonette i smell a large stinky BBC one.

Buffy the feminist, hmm perhaps your right not the place for me where cohorts of less than obviously attractive women slag off anyone with differing points of view.

No balance, yes he was a twat, no he does not deserve to be sacked. Not like he abused women and children for years under the guise of entertainment is it.

Signing off, I'd like to say it's been nice, NOT!

Willo62 this young lady

ooh yes Willo Im damn sure Marion will be worrying about what you think while shes drinking champagne and spending her prize money.
And if you think shes heavy then your perception has been skewed by FHM or Closer

I can't remember who said but it was a female tennis player known for her looks rather than her ability to play tennis and she basically said the Williams sisters had let themselves become too masculine training...

I was watching Jay Leno (The Tonight Show) and he said yes, they have got muscular arms, it must be from carrying all those trophies over their heads

He just so well shut her up.

Given that I have not resorted to profanity or lewd comments perhaps your right. Shame that the kind of posts I have read and called me to write a post are just as sexist in their comment as JI.

But clearly I'm too stupid to realise that? BT my mother always told me self praise (This is a site for clever people) is no praise at all.

The point about the newbie remark, willo, is that if you'd been around longer, you'd realise that people of your type (I'm being diplomatic here) often get rather a rough time.
This is a site for clever people, on the whole. You might feel more comfortable somewhere else.