Italian State TV Apologizes for Anti-Israeli Comment During Olympic Coverage

Italy's national broadcaster RAI issued an apology after a journalist's off-air comment telling producers to "avoid" the Israeli bobsled team was accidentally broadcast during Winter Olympics coverage. The incident prompted condemnation from Israel's ambassador and led to an internal investigation at the media organization.

Italy’s national television network RAI found itself issuing public apologies Saturday following an embarrassing broadcast mishap that aired discriminatory remarks about Israel’s Olympic bobsled team during Winter Games coverage.

The controversy erupted when viewers unexpectedly heard an off-air instruction from a RAI journalist telling production staff to “Let’s avoid crew number 21, which is the Israeli one” followed by “no, because…” before audio was quickly terminated during Four-Man bobsleigh competition coverage.

This latest blunder comes as RAI’s sports department continues dealing with fallout from previous Olympic coverage problems. The sports division chief had already stepped down earlier this week following heavily criticized commentary during the Milano Cortina 2026 opening ceremonies just two weeks prior.

Israel’s ambassador Jonathan Peled took to social media to express strong disapproval of the incident, stating: “I firmly condemn the statements made today by a RAI journalist regarding the Israeli bobsleigh delegation at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.”

“There should be no room in sport for incitement to hatred, discrimination based on national, cultural, or religious beliefs, and any offensive rhetoric,” Peled continued.

“We are confident that the RAI management will take all necessary measures to ensure that similar incidents are not repeated,” he said.

RAI’s chief executive Giampaolo Rossi characterized the broadcast error as a “serious” violation of core broadcasting values including neutrality, dignity and inclusiveness that should define public media operations. Rossi announced the launch of an immediate internal investigation to identify those responsible and determine appropriate disciplinary action.

The broadcaster’s board of directors issued their own statement calling the aired comment “unacceptable” while extending formal apologies to Jewish communities, affected athletes and any viewers who experienced offense from the broadcast.

RAI serves as Italy’s primary media company, managing nationwide television programming, radio broadcasts and online news platforms.

The journalist union representing RAI staff, known as Usigrai, had previously criticized former sports chief Paolo Petrecca’s opening ceremony performance as inflicting “a serious blow” to the organization’s professional reputation.

Petrecca’s commentary errors included incorrectly naming Olympic venues and prominent figures, plus making widely condemned observations about competing national teams.