Calgary Stampeder Maurice Price apologizes for anti-gay tweet

Calgary Stampeders receiver Maurice Price may be speedy on the field, but he took his time before apologizing for an anti-gay tweet that he sent out last month. He waited until he was back in Calgary for training camp to say sorry.

“I just want to come here and be face-to-face with you guys and not do it from a distance and just apologize,” Price said on June 1, day one of the camp.

“I just wanted to apologize to Stamps fans, the CFL, and especially Mr. Michael Sam himself,” Price continued. “In the future, I promise to represent the values of the CFL and the organization.”

The tweet in question was posted in May in reaction to the historic drafting of Michael Sam, the NFL’s first openly gay player, by the St. Louis Rams. ESPN and the NFL Network aired Sam reacting to the news by embracing his long-time boyfriend and sharing an emotional kiss in his home.

Price’s tweet read: “My faith won’t let me accept what took place over the weekend. Sorry, not sorry! #AdamAndEve #NotAdamAndAdam.”

Later on, after he realized he’d sparked a Twitter backlash, Price backtracked, writing: “Of course my words get misconstrued. I wish Sam nothing but the best and hope he has a fantastic career. It’s nothing personal against him.” Both tweets have since been deleted.

Price was also fined an undisclosed amount by the Canadian Football League for his comments. The CFL stated that it found the tweets “repulsive”.

“The CFL will not tolerate discrimination of any kind,” CFL commissioner Mark Cohon said in a statement in May. “Whether it’s race, religion or sexual preference, our values are of acceptance and equality.

“We fully support openly gay athletes in our league and in the sports community in general.”