Evander Holyfield: Comes Out Fighting

FORMER boxing champion Evander Holyfield has issued a public apology for likening homosexuality to a physical handicap while on Celebrity Big Brother.

The four-times heavyweight world title holder was the first housemate evicted from the Channel 5 show on Friday.

During his week in the Big Brother house with stars including Lionel Blair, Jim Davidson and Linda Nolan, he caused outrage and got a verbal warning from the show’s producers after saying being gay “ain’t normal” and can be “fixed”.

In his first newspaper interview since leaving the show, Holyfield, 51, told the Sunday Express: “I do owe an apology for what I said, but in that situation I felt I was talking to one person and I was telling that one person my view.

“I had completely forgotten about the cameras. I wanted to express how I felt about it, it was not that I was trying to push my views on to people, it was saying this is how I was raised, it wasn’t to the whole world. So I am going to make a public apology about that because I am sorry for anybody that I offended.”

The American boxer had been chatting with The Apprentice runner-up Luisa Zissman about the lack of openly gay sports stars when he made his comments. He was evicted when housemates Lee Ryan and Casey Batchelor had to choose between him and Zissman, after they came last in a public vote.

Holyfield, who had also admitted he once punched a horse...

Sunday Express.

That's right, he once punched a horse!

Update: Ofcom don't seem to be taking the complaints very seriously.