Ian Botham 'threw racism report on the floor' as England cricket icon vents fury
England icon Lord Ian Botham 'threw racism report on the floor'
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England icon Lord Ian Botham has revealed he threw the ICEC's recent report into cricket 'on the floor'.
The Independent Commission for Equality in Cricket last month claimed "elitism alongside deeply rooted and widespread forms of structural and institutional racism, sexism and class-based discrimination continue to exist across the game."
In addition to that, the England and Wales Cricket Board apologised to those who have 'suffered discriminaton'.
Yet Botham, a legend of the sport, has now vented his fury and branded the findings as 'nonsense'.
Lord Ian Botham is an icon of English cricket
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"I read bits of the report and to be honest I just threw it down on the floor in the end because in my eyes, it’s a nonsense," he said on Up Front with Simon Jordan.
"It was a complete and utter waste of money that could have been well spent on other things within the game.
"The report has taken at least two-and-a-half years to write, maybe more, and the point is that they are generalising and you cannot generalise.
"There will be isolated incidents and it can go both ways, it’s not just a one-way street.
"I don’t know where it is but I haven’t played in a dressing room like that, ever.
"To generalise and paint everyone with the same brush is wrong.
"I thought a lot of it was heavily loaded and when you read through it everything is anonymous, who is anonymous? Introduce me to Mr and Mrs Anonymous."
He continued: "No one’s interviewed me, no one asked me for my thoughts on it.
"I don’t know whether it’s just that I’m lucky or whether it’s because people know my thoughts on racism and the stances I’ve made, or the time I’ve spent with Nelson Mandela.
"He tapped me on the shoulder and said to me ‘you’re my hero’.
"He said, ‘When I was incarcerated we knew you’d taken a stance against South Africa and apartheid’. I spent a lot of time with him."
While disrgearding the claims, Botham also admitted he worries about lives being destroyed.
"With all the stuff that’s gone on at Yorkshire, I just hope we don’t end up with someone with blood on their hands," he continued.
"Because some of those guys’ lives have almost been totally destroyed through it.
"They don’t know what they’re supposed to have done, and no one has interviewed them."
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Azeem Rafiq believes English cricket has lessons to learn on racism
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Earlier this month, meanwhile, Azeem Rafiq insisted action had to be taken to prevent racism and discrimination from occurring in the sport.
"It's a time for cricket to really grasp where it's been going wrong, understand it properly and then put things in place that are going to make a difference," he told The Mirror.
"I think we're a long way from that. We know the problem. We need to understand the problem and then work out the solutions.
"It's upsetting and quite sad that even now there are large portions of cricket that just do not want to accept this as a problem so that's a worry.
"I'd encourage people to put their personal things to one side and start listening for the sake of the game, come together and play their part in making cricket a game for everyone."
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