Bode Miller sorry for blaming skier’s bad results on marriage

Bode Miller isn’t on the slopes for the Pyeongchang Olympics, but that didn’t stop him from taking a tumble.

Miller, the former U.S. Olympic gold medalist who is making his debut as a NBC skiing analyst in South Korea, has apologized after veering off course with his commentary during the women’s giant slalom event on Thursday.

During Austrian Anna Veith’s first run, Miller blamed part of the two-time medalist’s recent struggles on her 2016 marriage.

"The knee is certainly an issue,” Miller began in response to fellow broadcaster Dan Hicks. “I want to point out she also got married. And it's historically very challenging to race on World Cup with a family or after being married. Not to blame the spouses, but I just want to toss that out there, that it could be her husband's fault."

The remark led to an awkward, 10-second silence before Hicks resumed commentary — while ignoring Miller’s — as Veith finished her sub-par run.

Veith, the 2014 overall World Cup champion who won a gold and silver in Sochi, has suffered a decline since tearing her ACL and patellar tendon in 2015.

It didn’t take long for Miller to backtrack, saying he knows firsthand how tying the knot can actually help rather than hurt an athlete’s performance.

“Yea, I apologize. That was an ill-advised attempt at a joke," he said on the air. "I was an athlete that competed after marriage and I know how beneficial it is. I know the support team you need. I relied on my friends and family. And if you have the luxury of relying on a spouse I know they are inevitably your biggest supporter. And on Valentine's Day I didn't mean to throw spouses under the bus. Certainly, I'm going to be hearing it from my wife, I know."

Miller won his fifth and final Olympic medal in the Super-G event in Sochi, two years after he married model Morgan Beck in 2012. The 40-year-old retired last year after a career that included two overall World Cup championships, four World Championship gold medals, and a gold in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Miller also took his apology to Twitter.

“To be clear I was not seriously blaming Anna Veith’s lack of results on her husband,” he wrote. “It’s a changing of priorities that is historically hard, male or female.”

“I had the love and support of my wife while I was racing and I know it can be a huge asset. #happyvalentinesday.”