English rugby star Ben Cohen says he's
disappointed with Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant for
his use of an anti-gay slur.
The hunky, six-foot-two star of the
Sale Sharks club last
week kicked off a campaign against homophobia. The Ben Cohen
Acceptance Tour begins next month in Atlanta, and will host events in
three additional U.S. cities – Washington, Seattle and New York
City.
After he received a technical foul from
referee Bennie Adams during a nationally televised game on Tuesday,
Bryant yelled “Bennie … fucking faggot.” Bryant
has apologized for his remarks, and the NBA fined him $100,000 for
the outburst.
“It is disappointing to see this,”
Cohen
said on Wednesday in a statement posted at the blog of the Human
Rights Campaign (HRC). “As a professional athlete and rugby
World Cup champion, I understand the heat and passion of competition
at the highest levels. But we must all remember that strong bodies
must be balanced with strong characters, and works toward that end.
Our positions as role models demand it.”