Titmus leads Olympians in condemning Sweeney's nude sports ad
Olympic champion Ariarne Titmus has branded actor Sydney Sweeney's nude-themed sports ad "infuriating" and a "kick in the teeth" to women who have spent decades perfecting their craft.
Titmus did not hold back. She led a chorus of Australian Olympians condemning the campaign for US sports prediction company Novig, which features Sweeney in various states of undress while pretending to play different sports The Guardian.
The one-minute film is titled "Just Sports". It shows Sweeney posing with footballs, basketballs and a tennis racket, using the equipment to cover herself as she delivers the line: "Novig is just sports. So they wanted to show just sports" Page Six.
Novig says the campaign launched ahead of football season. Sweeney teamed up with the company as a strategic partner and equity holder, and Novig describes itself as a prediction market purpose-built for just sports Novig.
The criticism centres on sexualisation. Titmus and fellow Olympians argue the ad reduces female athletes to their bodies rather than their skill, fitness and years of early mornings in training Brisbane Times.
Sweeney has rejected that reading. In a press release statement, she said the concept was simple: to cut through the noise. She described the ad as about embracing a fun idea TODAY.
What makes this stand out is the messenger. Titmus knows exactly what elite preparation costs. A hundredth of a second at the wall can decide medals, funding and selection, and swimmers live with that arithmetic for years.
The row follows another controversy for Sweeney. Her Novig spot came after her American Eagle jeans ad drew widespread debate earlier this month.
Neither Novig nor Sweeney has announced any change to the campaign. The ad remains live on the company's channels.
