[1]VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (BP)–Pat Robertson will divest himself of horse racing interests following criticism from supporters who questioned the religious broadcaster’s involvement in a sport that promotes gambling.
“I am sorry that my fondness for the performance of equine athletes has caused you an offense,” he wrote in a reply sent to supporters of his ministries at the 700 Club and the Christian Broadcasting Network.
Robertson, who owns a two-year-old colt named “Mr. Pat” came under fire following a report in The New York Times. The report outlined financial involvement in horse racing — to the tune of more than $500,000.
Robertson contends that he was only interested in the competition among horses and not gambling. In the letter, the broadcaster told supporters that he used to race horses as a child and said “none of this brought any sense of embarrassment to me because I felt then, and feel now, there is nothing wrong with contests of skill, either between human athletes or equine athletes.”
“He wants to be above reproach, so he’ll do whatever he has to do,” Angell Watts, spokeswoman for the Christian Broadcasting Network in Virginia Beach told the Associated Press.
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