Boxing-Believe in Jesus, Fury says as gay comment row grows (Reuters)
New world heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury turned to divine inspiration on Wednesday to answer his growing number of critics after days of courting controversy over his comments about women and homosexuality. The 27-year-old Briton, who produced one of sport’s biggest shocks last month when he beat long-standing world champion Wladimir Klitschko, has been causing even more upsets out of the ring since then with his pronouncements on homosexuality, women, and fellow athletes. Subsequent interviews, in which he attempted to clarify his comments, have attracted further criticism, and despite denying he hated gays “or anybody”, the rumpus created by his remarks has led to demands that he be removed from the shortlist for the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) award, a prestigious annual honour bestowed on one of Britain’s top sporting figures.