YESTERDAY, US OLYMPIC luger Kate Hansen posted this video of a maybe-wolf strolling around in the hallway of her Sochi hotel.
She tweeted it with the caption: “Wolf in my hall?”
The video shot around the world, leading to headlines like these:
And even:
We also reported the story. Although in our defence, we did point out that it could be a prank.
Well, it was. And it was all thanks to US TV host and general mischief-maker Jimmy Kimmel.
Kimmel revealed last night that he filmed the video in the US, before sending it to Hansen to tweet.
The TV team had to recreate an entire Sochi hotel hallway in his studio to get the right effect.
And they hired a wolf, who was revealed on the show. He’s a rescue wolf called Rugby:
(But he IS a real wolf, not a dog.)
Here’s the full version of the ‘Sochi’ video. It features Jimmy Kimmel skiing down the corridor calling for his wolf:
Last night on his show, Jimmy Kimmel Skyped Kate Hansen in Sochi to thank her for her help in the prank:
“It kind of went a little crazy over here,” she said about the video.
I started hearing people talking about it, and security were freaking out because it was technically a breach of athlete safety.
She has now clarified that there are no wolves in her hotel.
It’s not the first time Jimmy Kimmel has successfully pranked much of the world’s media. That bollix.
