Jason Gardiner Twitter: Gemma Collins spat sees British athlete mistaken for Dancing On Ice judge

Some confused Twitter users have yet to note the different spelling
Stuck in the middle: Jason Gardener MBE has had a barrage of tweets about the Gemma Collins row
Barrington Coombs/PA Archive/PA Images
Natasha Sporn23 January 2019
The Weekender

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Jason Gardiner’s heated spat with reality star Gemma Collins has had one unexpected casualty as a British athlete with the same name as the Dancing on Ice judge is being incorrectly tagged on Twitter.

British sprinter Jason Gardener MBE, who hasn’t been active on the social media site this year, has been on the receiving end of angry tweets about Gardiner’s bust up with Collins .

Collins blasted the judge live on air last Sunday, accusing him of “selling stories about her” to the press.

Gardiner hit back, calling Collins a “brat” and attacking her skating skills after her Marilyn Monroe-inspired routine.

Fans of the show had a mixed response to his comments, with some calling him “nasty and unprofessional” while others agreed with his “standing up to Collins”.

However, some mixed up Twitter users have been mistakenly levelling their comments at the retired athlete Gardener – despite the different spelling.

Mr Nasty: Jason Gardiner has a reputation as a harsh critic on Dancing On Ice
Brett D. Cove / SplashNews.com

One tweet read: “No I feel like Jason is getting at @missgemcollins for her weight "where not gonna see big lifts" "What else are we going to get?" Proper putting Gemma down is wrong #DancingOnIce glad the GC put him in his place! @jasongardener.”

While another said: “@jasongardener You’re so right about Gemma and that’s what she doesn’t like. She is lazy and shouldn’t be on the show. [Love] to U xxx.”

“If you re watch @missgemcollins performance tonight on @dancingonice you will see that she does not speak or argue when being critiqued on her skill & performance, Gemma only fought back once @jasongardener got nasty and extremely personal. He got what he deserved. #Dancingonice,” commented somebody else.

However, others noticed the hilarious mix-up and jokingly called on Gardiner to "apologise" to the sports star.

Gardener isn’t the first case of mistake identity on the popular social media site, with US-based John Lewis often being bombarded by tweets meant for the retail store.

Unsuspecting users named Tom Heaton and Nick Pope have also suffered from a deluge of football-related tweets meant for their Burnley goalkeeper namesakes.

Dancing on Ice Contestants 2019 - In Pictures

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