FanDuel bans man who heckled sprinter Gabby Thomas
June 4 - FanDuel said it has banned a bettor for heckling U.S. sprinter Gabby Thomas at a recent track competition.
The man boasted online that his actions "made Gabby lose" and helped him win a $1,000 parlay bet on FanDuel.
Thomas, a three-time Olympic gold medalist, posted on X that the man "followed me around the track" in Philadelphia last weekend and "shouted personal insults."
Grand Slam Track, who staged the event, said it is conducting an investigation into the "reprehensible behavior."
"We are working to identify the individual involved and will take appropriate action as necessary," Grand Slam Track said, per ESPN. "We will implement additional safeguards to help prevent incidents like this in the future. Let us be clear, despicable behavior like this will not be tolerated."
The bettor refers to himself online as "The Track and Field Bully."
FanDuel confirmed it had informed the customer he is banned from its platform.
"FanDuel condemns in the strongest terms abusive behavior directed towards athletes," a FanDuel spokesperson said in a statement to ESPN. "Threatening or harassing athletes is unacceptable and has no place in sports. This customer is no longer able to wager with FanDuel."
Thomas, 28, won gold medals in the 200-meter dash and 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays at the 2024 Paris Summer Games.
--Field Level Media
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