CrossFit CEO Greg Glassman apologizes for controversial ‘Floyd-19’ tweet
(CNN) — CrossFit CEO Greg Glassman has apologized for his controversial tweets, in which he criticized the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation’s statement that racism is a public health issue.
“Floyd-19,” Glassman replied Saturday.
In a follow-up tweet, Glassman said the health research institute’s coronavirus model “failed,” and he criticized it for modeling a “solution to racism.”
“George Floyd’s brutal murder sparked riots nationally. Quarantine alone is ‘accompanied in every age and under all political regimes by an undercurrent of suspicion, distrust, and riots,’” he tweeted.
Glassman’s tweets sparked outrage online, and several partners, including Reebok, distanced themselves from CrossFit over the weekend.
He apologized Sunday.
“I, CrossFit HQ, and the CrossFit community will not stand for racism,” Glassman said. “I made a mistake by the words I chose yesterday. My heart is deeply saddened by the pain it has caused. It was a mistake, not racist but a mistake. Floyd is a hero in the black community and not just a victim. I should have been sensitive to that and wasn’t. I apologize for that.”
Reebok said it will end its partnership with CrossFit HQ at the end of the year, when the deal was up for renewal.
“We owe this to the CrossFit Games competitors, fans and the community,” a Reebok spokesperson said in a statement.