The BBC is facing a wave of backlash over its Winter Olympics coverage.

The BBC’s Winter Olympics has been hit with backlash (Image: BBC)

The 2026 Winter Olympics have been hit with backlash by disgruntled BBC viewers who have expressed their disappointment on social media this morning. The BBC has been broadcasting the sporting event on BBC One and BBC Two daily since the Games began last weekend, with some sports available to watch on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website. Clare Balding, Jeanette Kwakye and Hazel Irvine have been fronting the coverage alongside British Winter Olympics stars such as Robin Cousins and Lizzy Yarnold, who are commentating on the spectacle. As the Games continued this morning, however, fans lashed out on X (formerly Twitter) over the “pathetic” coverage, which they claim keeps “cutting” during events.

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Great Britain’s Matt Weston celebrates on the podium with the gold medal (Image: PA)

One annoyed viewer said: “#BBC What are you playing at, £180 license and you mess us about with the #winterolympics just stick it on BBC2 and leave it there, how much do we miss? Ice hockey the other day, said it was on iPlayer, turned over, and it wasn’t there.”

A second penned: “@BBC Your winter Olympic Coverage is literally a joke. Every time I try to watch an Ice Hockey match. You cut to something else randomly 3/4 of the way through a match. It’s pathetic.”

A third noted: “Thank f**k the #WinterParalympics is on @Channel4. the bbc has made a s**t show on the #WinterOlympics.”

Another raged: “@bbc @BBCSport stop the channel switching. We keep missing things. Today it’s the Super G, yesterday the gold medal performance in men’s skating! Just stay on one terrestrial channel and put alternatives on iPlayer.”

Despite the backlash, one person shared: “Lizzie Yarnold is superb on the @BBC coverage of the #winterolympics. She explains unfathomable sport clearly; she’s engaging and completely natural. More, please, from her!”

Someone else wrote: “Good to see  @BBCSport covering the @Novuna UK indoor athletics championships this weekend.”

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Prior to the events kicking off, BBC Sport director Alex Kay-Jelsk said: “The Winter Olympics spotlight the world’s most elite winter athletes as they push the boundaries of speed, precision and excellence across snow and ice, and BBC Sport can’t wait to bring audiences all the very best action and medal moments straight from Milan‐Cortina.

“Our expert line‐up of international winter sport stars, combined with our unmissable coverage, will ensure that the Italy 2026 Olympic Winter Games take pride of place in what promises to be an unforgettable year of sport.”