AN AUSTRALIAN BOOKMAKER has apologised for offering bets on what name Bruce Jenner will choose if and when he undergoes gender reassignment surgery.
Sportsbet offered customers “the chance to have a punt on what name he/she will choose” and offered a selection of names to choose from.
Among the available options? Zoey, Brucsilla, Kim and Dame Edna.
Sportsbet spokesman Will Byrne commented:
Fair play to Bruce, it takes a lot of balls to em…cut off your balls. We expect a lot of interest in this market ahead of the big reveal.
The media release links to a Google+ profile under the name Will Byrne, which lists him as having attended Dublin school Moyle Park College.
Sportsbet was quickly taken to task on social media for offering the bet, which many viewed as “transphobic” and “insensitive”.
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Initially, the company apologized for any offense caused, but refused to take down the bet.
However, betting has now been suspended with the company telling The Age that the bet was only ever intended to span for 24 hours.
This is not the first time that Sportsbet has landed itself in hot water of late.
The company recently courted controversy when they released a parody of Fifty Shades of Grey entitled Fifty Shades of Greyhound, which depicted a woman having sex with a greyhound.
Lovely.
