Ilie Nastase defends alleged racist and sexist outbursts: 'I don't give a s*** if they fine me'
ByPA Sport
Updated 24/04/2017 at 10:17 GMT
Ilie Nastase has refused to apologise for his outbursts during the weekend’s Fed Cup club against Great Britain, with the Romania captain accused of making sexist and racist comments over the course of the three-day tie.
Former tennis player Ilie Nastase in the royal box on Centre Court at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, July 6, 2015
Image credit: Reuters
Nastase was expelled midway through the World Group II play-off match after swearing at officials, GB captain Anne Keothavong and world number seven Johanna Konta.
Nastase was heard to call Keothavong and Konta "f***ing bitches" after the British team complained about calls from the crowd during points, while he also launched an astonishing rant at a Press Association journalist.
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Ilie Nastase and Anne Keothavong pose for photos
Image credit: Getty Images
But despite awaiting punishment by the ITF, Nastase has appeared unrepentant about his expulsion, and insists he does not care what punishment he is given.
I don't regret it and they can send me to prison if they want - I don't care. I was just trying to promote the interest of my girl. The English player just stormed off without even asking permission to leave the court and I admit that's when I called her a bitch. She kept trying to keep the crowd quiet - but it's not an opera, it's a game. I don't need this bullsh*t. I'm 70 years old. I don't even get paid for being team captain. I don't give a sh*t if they fine me or don't let me sit in the captain's chair.
Few public figures in Romania have been willing to condemn Ilie Nastase's comments, with Johanna Konta's opponent Sorana Cirstea instead accusing the Briton of "exaggerating" the incident by briefly walking off the court.
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Ilie Nastase restrained by security as he verbally abuses British journalist (PA Sport)
Image credit: Eurosport
And Romanian gymnastics great Nadia Comaneci has also sprung to the defence of his compatriot.
But Comaneci, who has been a close friend of the two-time grand slam champion since they both peaked in their respective sports in the late 1970s, warned he must accept any punishment imposed by the International Tennis Federation.
"Ilie is very patriotic and sometimes he says things that he doesn't really mean - it's just Ilie, and he will always be my friend," Comaneci said. "Of course Ilie is responsible for what comes out of his mouth, and I think it is important in sport that you keep the respect and good behaviour. He will have to deal with it (the consequences), but he can survive whatever happens to him. People make mistakes. Everybody in Romania loves Ilie because he is Ilie."
Nastase and Comaneci, who won five Olympic gymnastics gold medals and scored her sport's first perfect 10 in Montreal in 1976, are the two most high-profile sports stars in the country.
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