Sven Kramer is offering an apology for an unfortunate incident at a promotional event in PyeongChang.
The Dutch speed skater, who won gold in the men’s 5000m competition for a third straight Winter Olympics, tweeted an apology in Korean on Thursday.
— Sven Kramer (@SvenKramer86) February 22, 2018
“Hello fans from Korea, on behalf of the Heineken team I offer my sincere apologies to the fans who have been injured,” Kramer wrote, according to a rough translation of the tweet. “You came to encourage me, apologies for the inconvenience caused. We wish you a quick recovery.
“I’m going to do my best to show a better picture next time,” Kramer added. “I promise that. Thank you so much.”
Chang Dong-woo of Yonghap News Agency in South Korea relays that Kramer reportedly caused injuries to fans at a Heineken event by roughly throwing free gifts into the crowd.
Dutch speed skater @SvenKramer86's apology statement in Korean for inadvertently causing injuries at a @Heineken event in PyeongChang. According to @telegraaf, athletes reportedly threw out free gifts a bit roughly to the crowd. https://t.co/vTgrF6Ckqb
— 장동우 Chang Dong-woo (@odissy) February 22, 2018
Some on Twitter claimed that Kramer threw a bronze nameplate into the crowd, striking a woman and sending her to the emergency room. Footage also circulated of the supposed moment that he did.
speaking of bad times – you should apologize for you and your reckless teammates throwing a bronze nameplate at the audience, hitting a woman who had to be sent to the ER because of YOUR irresponsible behavior.
— (@threetonine) February 21, 2018
Please treat humans better in your country. @SvenKramer86 @janblokhuijsen @nl_olympics pic.twitter.com/lC7yYdtkHR
— ONSEMIRO (@MyDearKorea) February 21, 2018
The 31-year-old Kramer, who is a nine-time world champion and now an eight-time Olympic medalist, has become an icon of speed skating with his run of excellence dating back to the 2000s. But there is no excuse for that kind of reckless alleged behavior, and he seems to recognize that now.
