Colts announcer used racial slur shortly before retiring

Colts owner Jim Irsay said his team was “losing a legend” Sunday when longtime radio announcer Bob Lamey announced his retirement. 

But there appears to be more to the story. 

Lamey, the voice of the Colts for 35 years, retired just four days after a colleague voiced her complaint about the announcer using the n-word in front of her, 13 WTHR reported. 

From the station: 

The employee says Lamey used a racial slur off the air, in a conversation after a radio interview last Tuesday at Colts Camp. She says he was telling a story about when he worked at [Indianapolis Motor Speedway], sharing what someone else said at the track. “He had asked me if the mics were off and I said, ’Yeah, I turned everything off. You’re fine,’” the employee recalled. “Bob Lamey’s describing this person saying he was asked in an interview, ’Do you think anyone’s holding back their speed at IMS during quals? Do you think anyone’s holding back?’ And that person had replied ’there aren’t any ’blank’ in this race.”

She says Lamey didn’t say “blank” in retelling that story, and used a racial slur. “He said the ’N-word,’ yeah. He thought it was OK to use that type of language at work.”

 

The employee, who is black, then said Lamey tried to apologize for using the slur and asked her not to tell anyone. But the employee went to human resources. 

In a statement, Lamey’s attorney acknowledged his client used an “inappropriate word” 

Former #Colts radio voice Bob Lamey has released a statement tonight in response to the @WTHRcom story. Acknowledges that he used “an inappropriate word.” pic.twitter.com/sFlCDFrvFc

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) August 22, 2018