“Misogynistic” comments have rocked the world of athletics after Australian Olympian Ryan Gregson described women’s world record holder Agnes Jebet Ngetich beating male athletes as “getting chicked”.
Kenyan Ngetich, 25, set the 10km road world record in 2024 with a time of 28:46, before she set a new women-only 10km mark of 29:27 last year.
Three weeks ago at the Urban Trail de Lille in France, she then ran 28:58 — the third-fastest women’s 10km of all-time.
In the race, where men and women competed together, she finished 25 seconds behind Australian athlete Liam Boudin, and eight adrift of fellow Aussie Tim Vincent.
Gregson, who placed ninth in the 1500 metres at Rio 2016, referred to Ngetich as “a girl” when explaining the performances of Boudin and Vincent.
Speaking on his FTK Patreon podcast, Gregson said: “So they did a 10K recently and I think Liam ran about 28:20 or something (28:33) and Tim maybe 28:50. But Liam had a girl behind him for the first 5K. And I just said like, mate, that would be such a weird experience.
“You’re on track for a PB, you know you’re going well, but there’s a girl right next to you at halfway. You’re just re-evaluating everything.
“You’re like ‘I’m on for a career day today but am I going to get chicked?’ He’s not the type of guy (where) that should even be going through his head. You’d be shook. You’d be going through all your life choices like ‘How did I end up here?’ and ‘Why didn’t I study harder?’”
The remarks sparked a huge backlash on social media — with two-time New Zealand national champion marathon runner Lydia O’Donnell one of the most vocal critics.
O’Donnell shared a video of her training with Aussie marathon runner Ella McCartney and added the retort: “Who’s getting ‘chicked’ here? Asking for a friend.”
O’Donnell then spoke further in the caption of the video, saying: “Does ‘getting chicked’ still relate if a g̶i̶r̶l̶ woman beats a woman?
“In all seriousness, this audio shocked me. As a passionate feminist who has grown up in the running world and fought so hard to make our sport inclusive and welcoming to women, it more than upsets me that men with this level of influence are so inconsiderate and unaware of their language and the impact it has on others.
“Language is everything. Language shapes how people think and feel, influencing confidence, identity, and how others are treated. The words we use can uplift or diminish, often without us noticing. Misogynistic terms are especially harmful because they reduce women to demeaning stereotypes and help normalise disrespect and inequality. Choosing language carefully matters because it directly shapes the kind of culture we create.
“And running culture should celebrate everyone.
“I think it’s time the lads put down the microphones.”
The Female Athlete Project, which has a podcast hosted by Olympic gold medalist and former rugby sevens and Aussie Rules player Chloe Dalton, criticised Gregson’s comments.
“That ‘GIRL’ was the incredible WOMAN athlete and world record holder Agnes Jebet Ngetich – yes, men, shock! Women can run fast too,” the Female Athlete Project wrote in an Instagram post.
“Getting ‘chicked’ is a derogatory way of saying ‘it is embarrassing to get beaten by a woman’.
“But we are sorry to break it to you lads, women are getting faster and faster. And in MANY cases women can beat a lot of the men. And this OK. In fact it should be supported.
“And if you’re a man listening to this, just know that if a woman is with you in a race, or even passing you, the best thing you can do is give her a cheer and be inspired by her strength. Not intimidated.”
Following the fallout, Gregson, who is married to Olympic 3000m steeplechase and marathon runner Genevieve Gregson, released a 10-minute podcast on Sunday titled “Our apology” in which he explained his remarks and retracted his comments.
He said: “I owe an apology for my comments on the episode. This isn’t a representation of how I see women in sport. My wife is an elite athlete and some of my proudest moments in the sport of running have been watching her win or be successful and beat up on male athletes, even as recent as this morning.
“When I heard the clip back I immediately regretted the choice of words. It was really a poor attempt at humour. My comments were wrong, derogatory, and painted a terrible picture of how I actually see women in sport and running. I am embarrassed about those comments.
“Since yesterday I’ve locked away from social media because I am ashamed that I have offended so many people. I read the comments initially and I’ve seen how offending it’s been for women to see this clip and from the bottom of my heart I am truly sorry.
“That isn’t me, I respect the female athletes in this sport so much, especially because my wife is one of them and I would hate for young female athletes to think that I am that person that they heard on that episode. So I truly am sorry for my part.”
News.com.au has approached Gregson for comment.
Ngetich has enjoyed a sensational start to 2026, storming to victory in Lille having already claimed the Sirikwa Classic and World Cross Country Championships.
