Sore loser Harriet Dart let herself down with childish ‘smelly’ jibe


Tennis player Harriet Dart's childish outburst about her opponent's smell during a match sparked controversy, but she later apologized.
AI Summary available — skim the key points instantly. Show AI Generated Summary
Show AI Generated Summary

Indeed, compared to other sports, tennis barely merits a place in the odour top 10. In ice hockey, for instance, the inevitability of getting warm in a cold place while wearing large amounts of kit invariably gives the dressing room after a game a ripe whiff. In rugby, it is not unheard of for a prop, invoking the dark arts of the front row, to consume improbable amounts of garlic the night before a game, to get right up their opposite number’s nose. Wrestling, too, with its obligation to put the head in close proximity to the most intimate parts of an opponent, is not for the faint-nosed. As for the gym, all that working out in an enclosed space in kit that may not have been near a washing machine for several months, can make the atmosphere close to intolerable.

But tennis? The other player’s relationship with the shower is not really an issue. Which made Dart’s outburst all the more odd. Though given it was delivered midway through a 6-0, 6-3 defeat by a player who had come through the qualifiers, it was not so much odd as childish, petulant and sulky. This was the most schoolgirlish complaint – “Miss, she smells, err”.

Not that her opponent was unduly bothered. Boisson, perhaps bolstered by unexpected victory, took the insult in good part. She may not have heard it on court, but she was quickly made aware of it afterwards, and posted on social media a picture of herself in the dressing room holding some antiperspirant, with the caption “@Dove apparently need a collab.” A smart move. Not only did she look humorous and magnanimous, she was seizing the opportunity to court a sponsor.

As for Dart, she was quick to back down.

“Hey everyone, I want to apologise for what I said on court today, it was a heat-of-the-moment comment that I truly regret,” she wrote on the sportperson’s preferred vehicle of communication, Instagram.

It was a wise thing to do. And clearly the next time the heat of the moment gets a little too warm for her, she would be advised to apply some verbal roll-on.

Dart’s previous flashpoints

🧠 Pro Tip

Skip the extension — just come straight here.

We’ve built a fast, permanent tool you can bookmark and use anytime.

Go To Paywall Unblock Tool
Sign up for a free account and get the following:
  • Save articles and sync them across your devices
  • Get a digest of the latest premium articles in your inbox twice a week, personalized to you (Coming soon).
  • Get access to our AI features

  • Save articles to reading lists
    and access them on any device
    If you found this app useful,
    Please consider supporting us.
    Thank you!

    Save articles to reading lists
    and access them on any device
    If you found this app useful,
    Please consider supporting us.
    Thank you!