Following his epic win over Juan Martin Del Potro to take out the men’s singles final and his second Olympic gold medal, Andy Murray was forced to remind John Inverdale that women play tennis too – and that they’re pretty good at it.
During his post-match interview, Inverdale congratulated Murray on being the first person to win two Olympic gold medals in the sport.
However Murray was quick to correct him: “Venus and Serena have won about four each.”
His victory made him the first person to defend the singles title, and his response to this interviewer has made him our new feminist hero. And the internet agrees.
Sadly this isn’t Inverdale’s first sexist gaffe, in 2013 after Marion Bartoli’s Wimbledon victory, according to TIME he told Radio 5 listeners: “Do you think Bartoli’s dad told her when she was little ‘You’re never going to be a looker? You’ll never be a [Maria] Sharapova, so you have to be scrappy and fight.”
As for Andy Murray, he recently penned an article on his blog L’Équipe, about being a feminist after he copped criticism for hiring former women’s tennis champion Amélie Mauresmo as his coach.
“Well, if being a feminist is about fighting so that a woman is treated like a man then yes, I suppose I have. My upbringing means that I’m quite attuned to the whole thing. I came to tennis thanks to my mother. I always had a very close relationship with my grandmothers. I’ve always been surrounded by women. I find it easier to talk to them. I find it easier to open up to them. It’s a crying shame there aren’t more female coaches.”
