Eric Bristow has apologised for calling child sex abuse victims “wimps”.
Took him long enough!
The former world darts champion was dropped by Sky Sports after making the disgraceful comments and appeared on Good Morning Britain in order to try and explain himself.
Eric was slammed by Piers Morgan, Susanna Reid for claiming footballers involved in a child abuse scandal are not “proper men” like “tough guy” darts players.
He previously tweeted: “‘Might be a loony but if some football coach was touching me when I was a kid, as I got older I would have went back and sorted that p**f out.”
He added: ““U got to sort him out when u get older or don’t look in the mirror glad i am a dart player proper men.”
Initially, he tried to defend what he said.
Explaining: “It was my opinion.”
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He then snapped at Piers: “I am straight forward mate just like your mate [Donald] Trump, we say what we feel. If it’s upset a few people, it’s upset a few people but if one child tells someone they are getting abused that’s the whole idea of it all.
“The whole idea was to get young kids aware and complain about being abused when they are younger – it’s no good doing it 30 years later, you’ve missed the boat.
“So if I stop one lad getting abused at a young age I have done what I wanted to achieve.”
Marilyn Hawes, whose three children are victims of sexual abuse, called the “Crafty Cockney a “bully” and told him: “I am the mother of three sexually abused children.
“I don’t know how that makes you feel, but off the back of that I’ve created this charity.
“I find you the most deeply offensive man that’s breathed oxygen, and quite frankly, if I had a set of darts, I would stick them where the sun don’t shine.
“I sat with people last night that you have harmed immeasurably.
“And if you think that what you’ve said is clever, let me take you through what a bully is.
“You are a bully.”
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She added: “When it comes to being an abuser, you tick every box! You have misused your power and behaved inappropriately towards vulnerable people for your own personal gain.
“You could have blood on your hands!”
The 59-year-old eventually apologised saying: “I apologise for it. They’re not wimps, they’ve been sexually abused. It was a miswording – the whole idea was to get youngsters now to go out and complain.”
Viewers tuning in were shocked and took to Twitter to rip into Eric.
One wrote: “Eric Bristow is a vile pig…..what a disgusting human!!”
Another added: “Watching Eric Bristow on #GMB made me hate this ignorant man even more, he wasn’t sorry at all, he was trying to justify what he said!”
After the offensive comments, Eric was dropped from his Sky Sports role as a darts pundit.