Rogers TV St. John’s is distancing itself from comments made by one of their broadcasters at the Royal St. John’s Regatta following an outcry from the public and regatta committee.

Rogers TV does stroke-by-stroke coverage of each race but Don E. Coady took opinion about body image – namely being overweight – to the extreme when he said if he were a rower, he would find a tiny little coxswain, and keep them locked in the basement for three weeks with no food before they got into the boat.

The committee says those remarks in no way reflect their values, and they have reached out to the company to express their concerns.

In a statement, Rogers TV apologized to their viewers, the participants, the regatta committee and the entire community.

For his part, Coady says he could not see the coxswain in question at the time, and was making general comments about the collective weight of all the crew in a boat.

Coady, who calls himself a champion of inclusivity, says the remarks were simply made at the wrong time.

He says he’s devastated and wholeheartedly apologizes to anyone who has been hurt or disappointed.

The status of Coady with Rogers TV, who also is a co-host on their staple broadcast “Out of the Fog,” is unclear.