Australian Olympic reporter Danika Mason, who was seemingly drunk on the air Wednesday, apologized Thursday for her actions.
Mason could be seen slurring her words while discussing topics like the prices of coffee in Australia and the United States and recent Olympic events. At the time, some speculated if the cold temperatures — which sat at minus-8 degrees in Italy — were impacting her speech.
Others guessed correctly that she had too much to drink.
“The price of coffee over here is actually fine. It’s actually the price of coffee in the U.S. we have to get used to,” Mason, who works for Australia’s Channel Nine, said in response to hosts Karl Stefanovic and Jayne Azzopardi.
Mason apologized on air Thursday, revealing that she did have a drink before going live and handled the situation poorly.
“I totally misjudged a situation. I shouldn’t have had a drink, especially in these conditions,” Mason said. “It’s cold, we’ve got altitude, and not having had dinner probably didn’t help as well. But I want to take full responsibility, it’s not the standard I set for myself.
“We have an amazing few days left here at the Winter Olympics as well, so hopefully we can turn our attention back to that.”
Mason’s original slip-up caused controversy on social media. Channel Nine eventually turned off comments on its post.
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Her public apology issued positive reactions from her coworkers, signaling that her job is not currently in jeopardy.
“We know how hard you work, Danika,” Azzopardi said.
“You’re the best, Danika. Don’t worry about it. Let’s move on. You’re a legend,” Stefanovic added.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese even came out following the speech, saying that he was “pro Danika” and that there was “nothing to see here.”
Norway currently leads the Olympics medal standings with 16 golds and 34 total medals. Italy and the United States follow in second and third, respectively, in both categories. Australia, meanwhile, has six medals, three of which are gold.
Still, Mason’s situation adds another viral moment to what’s been a wild Olympic Games in Milan.