German Olympic cycling coach Patrick Moster was dismissed after he made a racist comment during the men’s road time trial Wednesday.
The decision to let Moster go was confirmed by the head of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) Thursday, saying the coach would “no longer perform his duties as part of the cycling team,” CNN reported.
Moster was overheard shouting “Get the camel drivers!” at German cyclist Nikias Arndt, encouraging him to catch up to two African competitors who were beating him in the race, Deutsche Welle reported.
The derogatory slur could be heard on a live broadcast of the event.
“If I’ve really understood what he was shouting, that was totally wrong,” German broadcaster Florian Nass said after the slur was muttered, according to Deutsche Welle. “Something like that has no place in sport.”
The coach later apologized for the remarks and claimed he was caught “in the heat of the moment,” Deutsche Welle added.
“In the heat of the moment and with the overall burden that we have here at the moment, my choice of words was not appropriate,” Moster said. “I am extremely sorry and can only offer my sincere apologies. I didn’t want to offend anyone.”
German cycling director Patrick Moster was caught in camera shooting to his rider Nikias Arndt🇩🇪 to “Get the camel drivers” referring to Azzedine Lagab🇩🇿 and Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier🇪🇷 who were in front of him.pic.twitter.com/93F3kBOk81
— Saad M (@CoolTheCucumber) July 28, 2021
A statement from the DOSB read that despite a sincere apology, the coach still “violated Olympic values” and was asked to leave Tokyo. (RELATED: Olympic Opening Ceremony Director Fired For Holocaust Joke)
“We remain convinced that his public apology for the racist remarks he made yesterday is sincere. With this derailment, however, Mr. Moster violated the Olympic values. Fair play, respect, and tolerance are non-negotiable…” DOSB President and Tokyo delegation leader Alfons Hörmann said in the statement.
Ardnt, who finished the race in 19th place, has since spoken out about the incident on Twitter, saying he is “appalled” and asking to distance himself from the moment.
“The Olympics and cycling stand for tolerance, respect and fairness,” Ardnt wrote in a translated Tweet. “I represent these values 100% and take my hat off to all the great athletes who have come from all over the world here in Tokyo!”
One of the athletes Moster targeted, Algeria’s Azzedine Lagab, also took to Twitter to address the incident.
“Well, There is no camel race in #olympics,” Lagab wrote. “That’s why I came to cycling.”
Well, There is no camel 🐪 race in #olympics that’s why I came to cycling. At least I was there in #Tokyo2020
— Azzedine Lagab (@AzzedineLagab) July 28, 2021
“At least I was there in #Tokyo2020,” Lagab added.