Mankini-dressed Olympian: Costume was “just a bit of fun”

Australian Olympic medallist Shane Rose, who was stood down from competition for wearing a mankini during an equestrian event, has apologised and insisted he is “a good person”. 

Rose, who won silver at both the 2008 and 2020 Olympics and bronze in Rio 2016, said he took part in the fancy dress competition last weekend “with the aim of providing light-hearted entertainment for those in attendance”.

He has since been stood down pending an investigation by governing body Equestrian Australia, which said it expected a resolution this week to determine whether he can compete at Paris 2024. 

The 50-year-old told the Sydney Morning Herald that there was “one lady” who raised concern about the mankini. 

“With a bit of luck this will all be a bit of a laugh in a few days and we can all move on. I wore a costume which you could see at a theme park or a beach, potentially no one has done it on [a] horse, but there you go,” he said. 

“I think I am a good person and I do a lot for the sport, and for people in different situations. I don’t feel like I have done anything particularly bad.”

“In hindsight, I should have re-thought what I did but at the time I thought it was just a bit of fun. Hopefully in a couple of days we can all move on and it will be behind us.”

Rose also wore two other costumes, including a gorilla suit with a g-string over the top and a Duffman beer suit as seen in TV’s The Simpsons. 

“To be clear, Shane has not been suspended or sanctioned,” it said.

“As is usual in these circumstances for all high performance athletes, he has been stood down from competition for several days while the review is carried out.”

“This does not affect his ability to train or otherwise participate in the sport. Equestrian Australia has also encouraged Shane to provide an account of the events if he wishes to do so.”

Colleagues in the sport slammed the governing body for its decision to suspend Rose. 

Fellow countryman Wayne Roycroft said that Equestrian Australia’s lack of support for Rose was “shameful”.