Former NBA star Dennis Rodman apologised yesterday for his televised outburst about a US missionary detained in North Korea, explaining that he had been stressed and drinking at the time.
Rodman was roundly criticised for his angry tirade in an interview with CNN, in which he appeared to suggest that the missionary, Kenneth Bae, had merited the prison sentence of 15 years handed down last year.
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Dennis Rodman
“I want to first apologise to Kenneth Bae’s family,” Rodman said in a statement. “I embarrassed a lot of people,” said Rodman, who was in the North Korean capital for an exhibition basketball match he had organised to mark the birthday of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
“I’m very sorry. At this point I should know better than to make political statements. I’m truly sorry.”
At the exhibition match on Wednesday, Rodman had sung Happy Birthday to his “best friend” Kim who was watching the game in a packed Pyongyang auditorium.