Hockeyroo apologises over racy Facebook comments

Given the negativity surrounding Munster hockey this week after Belvedere’s decision to exit the top flight, a bit of light relief comes from further afield in the hockey world, thanks to an interesting online mishap by Australian star Nikki Hudson. The 32-year-old, who won Olympic gold on home soil in Sydney eight years ago, apologised earlier this week over some saucy comments about the Spanish men’s hockey team posted on her Facebook page.

Hudson wrote on her site about wanting to be “impaled” by members of the Spanish men’s hockey team, but told News Ltd papers that she did not realise her site was available for members of the public to view, and blamed the comments on her sense of humour. On August 22, soon after the Hockeyroos finished their Olympic campaign in Beijing, she wrote on her site: “Nikki thinks the running of the bulls should be changed and we should be chased by the spainish (sic) mens hockey team. I would definately (sic) make sure I got caught and impaled!” She also wrote on August 17: “Nikki has a black eye from all the girls pushing me out of the way to get prime position by the window seeing naked aussies in rooms across from us!!!” Hudson said she hoped no one would be offended by her comments. “I’m quite light-hearted and don’t take myself seriously,” she said. “I was having a bit of a laugh. I definitely wouldn’t have written those quotes if I knew everybody could read it.” Hudson said she had apologised to the head of Hockey Australia and hoped no one was offended by the posting.

Hockey Australia has since reissued warnings to players about the risk of public internet communication. The veteran hockey star, a gold medallist from the Sydney Olympics, is the latest athlete including Beijing triple swimming gold medallist, Stephanie Rice, to be plagued by Facebook controversy. Rice posted pictures of herself partying in a policewomen’s outfit alongside fellow Australian swimmer Eamon Sullivan in March of this year, prompting Swimming Australia to order all its athletes to block their profiles from public access.