Swimming legend Dawn Fraser's remark that Australian tennis stars Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic should return to their parents' home countries was "intolerant", Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane has said, but he stopped short of describing it as racist.
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Dr Soutphommasane said in his address to the National Press Club on Tuesday that most Australians - 85 per cent - believed multiculturalism was good for the country: "Contrary to what the likes of Dawn Fraser might say, most Australians do not tell migrants and their children to go back to where they came from."
Asked later whether her comment was racist, Dr Soutphommasane said: "They were intolerant and I would like to give her the benefit of the doubt. They do capture sentiments that are not acceptable in Australia's contemporary multicultural society."
Fraser was asked by Today host Karl Stefanovic on Tuesday morning about Nick Kyrgios' behaviour at Wimbledon. Kyrgios has been accused of tanking during his fourth round loss against Richard Gasquet and later argued with journalists who asked about his apparent lack of effort in returning serve during the third game of the second set.
"I think it is absolutely disgusting," she said. "I am so shocked to think that he went out there to play and he tanked … he did all that tanking, it's terrible."
"I think...they've got too much money at an early age, they're being ill-advised by their management. They should be setting a better example for the younger generation of this great country of ours."
Fraser then said: "If they don't like it, go back to where their fathers or their parents came from. We don't need them here in this country if they act like that."
German-born Tomic, whose parents were born in former Yugoslavia, was ousted from Australia's Davis Cup team this week after he launched a tirade on Friday against Pat Rafter and Tennis Australia.
Kyrgios, who has a Greek-born father and his mother was born in Malaysia, defended himself on Twitter, calling Fraser a "blatant racist". His mother Nill Kyrgios also described the attack as racist: "I have no comments on Dawn Fraser's nasty racist attack...but she is out of line. #unaustralianbehaviour."
"I said, 'If they don't want to be Australians then maybe they should go back to the country where their parents come from'. That's not being racist," she said.
"I can see it being interpreted that way ... but it wasn't intended that way.
"I said they were not good Australians by behaving the way they are on court. Do you think they are?"
However, she released a statement later in the afternoon apologising "unreservedly.
"My intended message, which was not delivered as articulately as it could have been, was on a purely sporting level rather than meant as an attack on Nick's ethnicity," Ms Fraser said.
"Australians have a rich sporting heritage made up of individuals from a variety of different countries of origin."
Dr Soutphommasane said it was disappointing to hear such remarks from such a well-respected Australian: "We should not be in the business of telling migrants and their children to go back to where they came from. Australia has been a very successful multicultural society; it takes great pride in the achievements of its immigrants and the children of immigrants. In Nick Kyrgios, in Bernard Tomic, we have embodiments of that success."
While people may not agree with everything they said or did, they could distinguish between their performance as athletes from their cultural heritage.
"Someone's heritage does not really come into their performance on the court or how they carry themselves," he said.
"If someone has an issue or a criticism to make about an individual's conduct then criticise the individual, but don't bring their heritage into it. It's just gratuitous."
Dr Soutphommasane hoped the remarks did not "embolden other people to say the same thing or to believe that people have licence" to do so.
"I just hope young people in sport don't regard this as an example they should follow. There are better examples and role models that they can follow on these issues."
with David Polkinghorne