A Hong Kong media firm has defended a commentator who referred to a Ugandan gold medallist’s podium celebration as that of an “African gorilla”.
TVB, based in Hong Kong in south-eastern China, issued a statement following an online backlash against the unnamed commentator’s remarks during the men’s 5000m.
On 6th August, Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, 24, excitedly pounded his chest on the podium and a TVB commentator said: “Are these what African gorillas are like?”
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The commentator’s co-presenter apparently tried to diffuse the remark by saying that it was simply “a gesture of victory”.
Following an online backlash, TVB said in a statement that the “network’s commentator” only made an “objective description” that “did not constitute any form of discrimination or slander”.
After his 5000m gold-medal win, Cheptegei explained that his celebration was because he “represents the gorillas, the silverback”, the name for a mature mountain gorilla.
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When using social media, the athlete, who is also a member of his country’s tourist board, often accompanies his posts with the hashtags ‘silverbackdreams’ and ‘silverback’.
In May, he posted a photo of a mountain gorilla with the message: “I am a silverback.”
According to the Red List of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), mountain gorillas are considered ‘endangered’ with only around 600 adults left.
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Around half of them live in national parks in Uganda, according to the country’s Wildlife Authority.