Get rid of Carlton Kirby

Currently ruining the Giro for viewers of the English-language international feed of Eurosport. Why do they do different sets of commentators for that? Stages 6 and 7 of the Giro, we had Ned and Jacopo. A massive, MASSIVE improvement on Kirby. Actually telling us what is in the race. And interesting, rather than the stream of egocentric drivel that we had from Kirby on Stages 1-5. (This is on the international feed.) Kirby is back for Stage indeed 8. BTW, in case any non-native English speakers are wondering, when Kirby says FOLDOVER, bear in mind that does not mean anything at all. It is entirely nonsensical in terms of cycling - and invented by him. It does not make sense to any other person (if it makes sense to him).

Sorry to hear you had to endure that. I have Discovery+/TNT and the team are great. I don't know why Eurosport would differ, something contractual?

such a fool! how pathetic is it to be the only one to laugh at his own jokes? and he is not even trying to pronounce the names of the riders properly. stupid bugger - get rid of him! and don't pick up the phone when he is ringing!

Carlton "it's all about me and my anecdotes" Kirby adds nothing of value/relevance to any race. The depth of knowledge & experience of other commentators - Sean Kelly, Robbie McEwan, Rob Hatch etc renders Mr Kirby's input an embarrassment. Pension time, methinks.

Unfortunately have to see bikeraces on other channels due to his clueless commentary - on top he often gets things wrong, and is just endlessly talking, making stupid non-funny jokes to which he himself laughs and says "anyway" - his only live report is how many kilometers are left. Idiotic really. Why not have some qualified people to commentate. It is really bizar.

Just not funny or knowledgable. Spends half his time laughing at what he's just said, whether or not he was trying to be funny. If you blanked out the words "indeed", "we shall see" and other superfluous rubbish, there'd be nothing left (except the irritating laugh). Would be forgiveable if commentary was informative, but it is normally at the expense of telling us what is happening.

Brilliant comment. Please send it to them.

deleteYes, I have an ulterior motive. And so do the thousands of people who have signed this petition, and even taken the time to comment. Humour is subjective, but if you are being serious about his knowledge, you know nothing about cycling.

You must be joking!

Carleton Kirby is an ageist pompous ass and I now turn off races covered by him due to the ceaseless inane drivel.

My wife will no longer watch cycling with me if CK is the sole announcer. Absolutely a blithering idiot. No offense, but listening to his broadcast is akin to torture by thumbscrews!

He spouts drivel.

Please make this happen!!

We deserve better. Focus on the race and the riders.

We need better

Carlton Kirby is by far the best cycling commentator. By far the most entertaining with unparalleled humour and knowledge of the sport and individuals. You must have an ulterior motive for organising such a petition.

He's insufferable

I tried sending e mails to eurosport years ago asking him to shut up. He doesn't scream any more over the last 5k and he doesn't laugh when the expert commentater is speaking as much, but his mouth still operates independently of his brain and he continues to use crass metaphors (eg the cobbles being 'like stinging jellyfish'). He also assumes he has to speak continually, filling in with the distance to go and the gap every few seconds. Most of the cycling commentaters talk way to much, Jez cox tries to break the world speed record for talking, but Carlton tops the lot with drivel. I'm sure he's a nice chap, but my heart sinks when he's on the commentary and I have to watch with the sound off and have done for years. He should've stuck to being a DJ.

He’s an absolute twat.

Why does Carlton Kirby still have a job at WBD? He is unprofessional, rude, xenophobic and seriously flawed in his cycling knowledge. Starting with the obvious: he has no idea what he's talking about. For example, at yesterday's De Brabantse Pijl, he kept banging on about how he thought Emiel Verstrynge was actually Alpecin–Deceuninck's leader because he's a great sprintter. Firstly, he's not, he's more of a climber, and secondly, at that exact moment, he was driving hard at the front of the peloton with six teammates sitting behind. He also said about how Ethan Hayter was following moves at the front of the peloton, only for the TV cameras to cut to him getting distanced at the back. He always just creates his own narratives rather than using the excitement of what's actually happening in the races, and it's infuriating. Then there's the rudeness and xenophobia: pronouncing Gaudu name as "Godot" just so it fits in with an inane "Waiting for Godot" pun; mocking Niccolò Bonifazio by calling him "Mr Happyface"; the unbelievable inappropriateness of saying Bauke Mollema "sounds like someone who has been named underwater" (this is an actual quote and has been said more than once); once commenting about the "pesky Italians"; mocking local cuisines and cultures such as always saying about how bad Savoyard cooking is because they supposedly use tinned potatoes. There's also the inane drivel and wordplay. He uses the wrong words so often: "headland" to just mean a corner (a headland is a coastal feature, not one you'd find up a mountain); using the phrase "bouche-amuse" rather than the correct amuse-bouche (from someone who claims he speaks French too); using the term "almer mater" instead of modus operandi. He talks like he thinks he's a linguitstic genius but he's not. And then there's the laughing and self-promotion. He loves the sound of his own voice. He's the only one ever laughing at his own comments as his co-commentators sit there what seems like uncomf