Top Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice was slammed after a posting a homophobic slur on her Twitter page, The (Sydney) Daily Telegraph reported Monday.
Rice, one of the sport's glamor girls, posted a message after Australia's rugby union team, the Wallabies, defeated South Africa's side the Springboks in Bloemfontein Saturday.
The Olympic gold medal winner tweeted: "Suck on that f**gots," adding; "Probs the best game I've ever seen!! Well done boys".
The comment, which Rice later removed, triggered a furious reaction from openly gay former Australian rugby league player, Ian Roberts.
"She is an idiot and anyone who continues to endorse her as an athlete is an idiot as well," Roberts said.
"And I say that with a very sad tone in my voice. What a fool."
Acknowledging the comment, Rice told the Telegraph in an email: "I made a comment on Twitter last night in the excitement of the moment.
"I did not mean to cause offence and I apologise. I have deleted it from the site."
Roberts, one of a handful of openly gay athletes and a devoted gay-rights advocate, said it was "inexcusable."
"It's never acceptable to belittle gay people."
Last month Rice was linked with one of the players in the Wallabies team, flyhalf Quade Cooper.
It was reported the couple were regularly in contact as he provided comfort from South Africa following her announcement that she would miss the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October because a chronic shoulder injury requires surgery.
